General Assembly Raised Bill No. 812
January Session, 2017 LCO No. 3780
*03780_______KID*
Referred to Committee on COMMITTEE ON CHILDREN
Introduced by:
(KID)
General Assembly
Raised Bill No. 812
January Session, 2017
LCO No. 3780
*03780_______KID*
Referred to Committee on COMMITTEE ON CHILDREN
Introduced by:
(KID)
AN ACT CONCERNING MENTAL, EMOTIONAL AND BEHAVIORAL HEALTH SERVICES FOR CHILDREN.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Assembly convened:
Section 1. Subsection (a) of section 17a-22bb of the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective July 1, 2017):
(a) (1) The Commissioner of Children and Families, in consultation with representatives of the children and families served by the department, providers of mental, emotional or behavioral health services for children and families, advocates, and others interested in the well-being of children and families in this state, shall develop a comprehensive implementation plan, across agency and policy areas, for meeting the mental, emotional and behavioral health needs of all children in the state, and preventing or reducing the long-term negative impact of mental, emotional and behavioral health issues on children. In developing the implementation plan, the department shall include, at a minimum, the following strategies to prevent or reduce the long-term negative impact of mental, emotional and behavioral health issues on children:
(A) Employing prevention-focused techniques, with an emphasis on early identification and intervention;
(B) Ensuring access to developmentally-appropriate services;
(C) Offering comprehensive care within a continuum of services;
(D) Engaging communities, families and youths in the planning, delivery and evaluation of mental, emotional and behavioral health care services;
(E) Being sensitive to diversity by reflecting awareness of race, culture, religion, language and ability;
(F) Establishing results-based accountability measures to track progress towards the goals and objectives outlined in this section, sections 17a-22cc, 17a-22dd and 17a-248h and section 7 of public act 13-178;
(G) Applying data-informed quality assurance strategies to address mental, emotional and behavioral health issues in children;
(H) Improving the integration of school and community-based mental health services; and
(I) Enhancing early interventions, consumer input and public information and accountability by (i) in collaboration with the Department of Public Health, increasing family and youth engagement in medical homes and developing an early intervention program to identify children who are in need of or currently receive mental, emotional or behavioral health services in order to improve the provision of such services; (ii) in collaboration with the Department of Social Services, increasing awareness of the 2-1-1 Infoline program; (iii) in collaboration with the Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services, developing strategies to coordinate the delivery of mental health care to children and providing notification to such children's parents and guardians regarding available mental health services; and [(iii)] (iv) in collaboration with each program that addresses the mental, emotional or behavioral health of children within the state, insofar as they receive public funds from the state, increasing the collection of data on the results of each program, including information on issues related to response times for treatment, provider availability and access to treatment options.
(2) Not later than April 15, 2014, the commissioner shall submit and present a status report on the progress of the implementation plan, in accordance with section 11-4a, to the Governor and the joint standing committees of the General Assembly having cognizance of matters relating to children and appropriations.
(3) On or before October 1, 2014, the commissioner shall submit and present the implementation plan, in accordance with section 11-4a, to the Governor and the joint standing committees of the General Assembly having cognizance of matters relating to children and appropriations.
(4) On or before October 1, 2015, and biennially thereafter through and including 2019, the department shall, in collaboration with the Department of Education, Department of Social Services, Department of Developmental Services, Office of Early Childhood, Department of Public Health and Court Support Services Division of the Judicial Branch, submit and present progress reports on the status of implementation, and any data-driven recommendations to alter or augment the implementation in accordance with section 11-4a, to the Governor and the joint standing committees of the General Assembly having cognizance of matters relating to children and appropriations.
This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following sections:
Section 1 July 1, 2017 17a-22bb(a)
This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following sections:
Section 1
July 1, 2017
17a-22bb(a)
Statement of Purpose:
To require the Commissioner of Children and Families to collaborate with the Department of Public Health and the Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services in the development of an implementation plan for meeting the mental, emotional and behavioral health needs of children.
[Proposed deletions are enclosed in brackets. Proposed additions are indicated by underline, except that when the entire text of a bill or resolution or a section of a bill or resolution is new, it is not underlined.]