January 21, 2010

White House, Congressional Leaders Consider Next Steps on Healthcare Reform

Apply to Participate in Multi-Site Randomized Controlled Trial Evaluating Benefits of Early Intervention for Individuals with Schizophrenia

Apply for SAMHSA Science and Service Awards

White House, Congressional Leaders Consider Next Steps on Healthcare Reform

The House and Senate are currently engaged in conference negotiations to reconcile their two versions of healthcare reform legislation into a single bill that will need to be approved again by each chamber.  Prior to the results of Massachusetts’ special election, in which Republican Scott Brown defeated Democrat Martha Coakley, Senate Democrats were counting on the support of all 60 members of their caucus to pass the final bill without Republican support.  However, Brown often stated during his campaign that he would be “the 41st vote” against healthcare reform.  If he keeps this promise, passing a reconciled bill through the Senate will be even more difficult than it was in December, when Democrats passed their bill with a bare 60-vote majority after weeks of rocky negotiations.  

The House and Senate leadership and the White House now face a difficult choice on how to proceed: to avoid further obstacles in the Senate, the House could vote to pass the Senate’s version of healthcare reform – but many Representatives have voiced concern about some of the Senate-passed provisions, and it is not yet clear whether the Senate’s bill can win 218 votes in the House, the number needed for passage.  On the other hand, if conference negotiations to reconcile the two bills continue, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid may have to make additional changes in order to win the support of one or more Senate Republicans who could fill in the missing 60th vote.  

Earlier this month, President Obama had indicated that he wanted Congress to pass healthcare reform before his State of the Union address.  The State of the Union has now been scheduled for Jan. 27, but it is not clear whether the debate over healthcare reform will be resolved by that date.  Regardless, Congressional leaders have voiced continued support for reaching an agreement on healthcare reform that will win approval from both chambers and President Obama.

The National Council continues to advocate for the provisions in the healthcare bills that are of importance to the mental health and substance use community.  Most recently, we have signed on to a letter to Speaker Nancy Pelosi in support of the House-passed provision that would require states to suspend – rather than terminate – Medicaid eligibility for incarcerated youth.  Stay tuned to the Public Policy Update and our Healthcare Reform Update webinar series for future updates.

Apply to Participate in Multi-Site Randomized Controlled Trial Evaluating Benefits of Early Intervention for Individuals with Schizophrenia

The National Institute of Mental Health is funding a multi-site randomized controlled trial evaluating the benefits of an early intervention treatment package for individuals with first episode psychosis.  The "Recovery After an Initial Schizophrenia Episode" (RAISE) project is an NIMH contract-supported research project that seeks to fundamentally change the trajectory and prognosis of schizophrenia through coordinated and aggressive treatment in the earliest stages of illness.  RAISE is designed to transform the current paradigm for treating schizophrenia in the United States by shifting the focus from managing end stage illness to early and pre-emptive intervention.  The project will seek to determine whether community-based early identification and intervention programs can slow or halt clinical and functional deterioration in schizophrenia with the ultimate goal to reduce the disability and financial impact on public systems. 

In this study, all sites will be expected to engage individuals early in their first episode of psychosis and to recruit them into the study. Half of the sites will be randomized to provide the RAISE Enhanced Treatment program and the other half of the sites will be randomized to provide community care as usual. All study participants will be assessed at baseline and every 6 months for at least 2 years via high technology video-based assessments by clinical evaluators who are blind to treatment assignment. 

Participating sites will receive training on the RAISE Enhanced Treatment Program; support for project staff; and are expected to enroll approximately one first episode study participant each month over 16 months. Enrollment is expected to start in early 2010. 

To learn more about the study, including eligibility criteria, timeline and compensation for participation and research methods, read the project description online and visit NIMH's website.  

If your organization would like to apply, please contact the team's Project Coordinator, Patricia Marcy at pmarcy@nshs.edu by COB January 29, 2010.


Apply for 2010 SAMHSA Science and Service Awards

The National Council for Community Behavioral Healthcare encourages members to apply for The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) 2010 Science and Service Awards. This national program recognizes community-based organizations and coalitions that have shown exemplary implementation of evidence-based mental health and substance abuse interventions.

Awards will be made in each of the five categories: substance abuse prevention, treatment of substance abuse and recovery support services, mental health promotion, treatment of mental illness and recovery support services, and co-occurring disorders. To be eligible for an award, an organization must have successfully implemented a recognized evidence-based intervention. Examples include those that are published in scientific literature and/or appear on a Federal and/or state registry of evidence-based interventions. Developers of an evidence-based intervention or their research collaborators, previous award winners, and Federal agencies are not eligible for the awards. 

Winners will receive a commemorative award and will be further recognized on www.samhsa.gov. Award winners do not receive any financial compensation. 

Complete information is available on the SAMHSA website by clicking on “Application Materials for 2010 Awards.” 

Applications must be emailed by April 9, 2010 to Dr. Michelle Duda, Science and Service Awards Coordinator, at duda@unc.edu. For those without access to email, the application must be postmarked by midnight on April 9, 2010 and mailed to Michelle Duda, Ph.D., FPG Child Development Institute, CB #8040 UNC Campus, Chapel Hill, NC 27599-8040.