The Department of Mental Health strives to improve the quality of life for adults with serious and persistent mental illness and children and adolescents with serious mental illness or severe emotional disturbance. The Department ensures access to an integrated network of effective and efficient services that promotes consumer rights and responsibilities, treatment, rehabilitation, and recovery. Case management, treatment, and short-term, residential, and inpatient care are among the range of service options. Special emphasis is placed on providing services to clients in community-based settings. Additionally, the Department performs evaluation and treatment for court-involved individuals, as well as research into the causes of mental illness.

Objectives

In Fiscal Year 1999, additional funding will allow the Department to expand housing assistance and supportive services to homeless individuals with mental illness. One priority, in this regard, is to provide more appropriate short-term respite, transitional residence, and permanent housing services. In addition, an increase in funding for case management will allow the Department to provide services to an additional 450 clients.

The Department will also continue to strive to meet the needs of young people with serious mental illness and severe emotional disturbances who because of their age are no longer eligible for services provided by the Department of Social Services, Department of Youth Services, and special education programs, but who meet the Department of Mental Health's eligibility standards. Other priorities include:

• provide additional residential services;
• commence statewide planning on a treatment model for people with mental illness and substance abuse disorders;
• finalize and implement new Individual Service Planning regulations;
• improve health access for clients of the Department; and
• continue a public awareness campaign to address stigma related to and promote treatment of mental illness.

Budget Recommendations

The Fiscal Year 1999 budget recommendation includes three expansion items: 1) a $2 million increase to expand services to homeless individuals suffering from mental illness; 2) a $1.4 million increase to address increased pharmaceutical costs; and 3) a $500,000 increase for case management.

In addition, these recommendations include $2.86 million to improve salaries for the Department's lowest paid, contracted, direct care workers. In Fiscal Year 1998, this funding was appropriated as part of a reserve account in the Executive Office for Administration and Finance.

These recommendations also include three account consolidations to promote administrative efficiency: 1) the fuel account (5011-7777) will be consolidated into the Department's community mental health centers account (5051-0100) and the state facilities account (5095-0000); 2) the secure unit at Medfield State Hospital account (5042-1000) will be consolidated into the state facilities account (5095-0000); and 3) the metro-Boston homeless account (5046-3000) will be consolidated into the statewide homeless account (5046-2000).

Budgetary Direct Appropriations

DEPARTMENT OF MENTAL HEALTH ADMINISTRATION
5011-0100	For the administration of the department of mental health	20,348,462

CHILD AND ADOLESCENT MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES
5042-5000	For child and adolescent services	58,025,371

ADULT COMMUNITY MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES
5046-0000	For adult mental health services, including community, inpatient, and support services	210,643,594

RENTAL SUBSIDIES
5046-1000	For rental subsidies to eligible clients; provided, that the department shall establish the amounts of said subsidies so that payment thereof and of other commitments from this item shall not exceed the amount appropriated herein, including any balance that may be made available from the prior fiscal year	2,607,550

STATEWIDE HOMELESSNESS SERVICES
5046-2000	For statewide homelessness services	18,289,431

DEPARTMENT OF MENTAL HEALTH EMPLOYEE CHARGEBACK COSTS
5046-9999	For charges assessed to the department of mental health for the payment of workers` compensation, unemployment insurance, Medicare taxes, and health security plan costs	7,854,776

EMERGENCY SERVICES AND ACUTE INPATIENT CARE PROGRAM
5047-0001	For the designated emergency programs and acute inpatient and diversionary services; provided, that the department is authorized to enter into an interdepartmental service agreement with the division of medical assistance for the purchase of said services and for such other services as said agreement may provide; and provided further, that funds may be transferred from this item to items 5042-5000 and 5046-0000, provided that the total of such transfers shall not exceed the most recent savings projection from the implementation of said agreement	32,271,716

COMMUNITY MENTAL HEALTH CENTERS MAINTENANCE AND OPERATION
5051-0100	For community mental health centers	79,417,290

FORENSIC SERVICES PROGRAM FOR MENTALLY ILL PERSONS
5055-0000	For forensic mental health services	7,435,340

STATE PSYCHIATRIC HOSPITALS MAINTENANCE AND OPERATION
5095-0000	For inpatient and facility-based services; provided, that the department is hereby authorized to transfer funds from this item to item 5046-0000 in an amount not to exceed $5,000,000	108,401,156

Budgetary Retained Revenues

"CHOICE" PROGRAM RESIDENTIAL HOMES MAINTENANCE RETAINED REVENUE
5046-4000	The department of mental health is hereby authorized to expend an amount not to exceed $125,000 in revenues collected from occupancy fees charged to the tenants in the creative housing option in community environments, the CHOICE program, so called, authorized by chapter 167 of the acts of 1987; provided, that all such expenditures shall be for the routine maintenance and repair of facilities in said program	125,000

EMERGENCY SERVICES AND ACUTE INPATIENT CARE PROGRAM RETAINED REVENUE
5047-0002	Notwithstanding the provisions of any general or special law to the contrary, the department of mental health may expend revenues for continuing care services in the community in an amount not to exceed $6,000,000 from increased revenues from federal reimbursement collected for designated emergency programs and acute inpatient and diversionary services; provided, that for the purpose of accommodating discrepancies between the receipt of retained revenues and related expenditures, the department may incur expenses and the comptroller may certify for payment amounts not to exceed the lower of this authorization or the most recent revenue estimate therefor as reported in the state accounting system	6,000,000

Federal Grant Spending

DEPARTMENT OF MENTAL HEALTH INFORMATION WAREHOUSE
5012-9106	For the purposes of a federally funded grant entitled, Department of Mental Health Information Warehouse	100,000

PROJECT FOR ASSISTANCE IN TRANSITION FROM HOMELESSNESS
5012-9121	For the purposes of a federally funded grant entitled, Project for Assistance in Transition from Homelessness	332,000

SHELTER PLUS CARE PROGRAM
5046-9102	For the purposes of a federally funded grant entitled, Shelter Plus Care Program	144,322

Trust and Other Spending

5047-9108

ANNIE E CASEY - ROXBURY UNITES FOR CHILDREN AND FAMILIES

750,000

5311-9101

SOLOMON MENTAL HEALTH CENTER

616,550

5535-2689

CAPE COD AND ISLANDS MENTAL HEALTH AND MENTAL RETARDATION CENTER

3,162,411

5540-2689

BROCKTON MULTI-SERVICE CENTER

557,300

5541-2689

DR JOHN C CORRIGAN JR MENTAL HEALTH CENTER

3,057,512

5542-2689

RESEARCH AND/OR TRAINING TRUST

213,363

5651-2689

MASSACHUSETTS MENTAL HEALTH CENTER

1,335,613

5652-2689

DR SOLOMON CARTER FULLER MENTAL HEALTH CENTER

1,276,311

5653-2689

LINDEMANN MENTAL HEALTH CENTER

36,861

5851-2689

QUINCY MENTAL HEALTH CENTER

1,773,495