BILL NUMBER: SB 639 CHAPTERED 10/10/01 CHAPTER 692 FILED WITH SECRETARY OF STATE OCTOBER 10,2001 PASSED THE SENATE SEPTEMBER 13, 2001 PASSED THE ASSEMBLY SEPTEMBER 10, 2001 AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY SEPTEMBER 6, 2001 AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY AUGUST 28, 2001 AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY AUGUST 20, 2001 AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY JULY 9, 2001 AMENDED IN SENATE JUNE 4, 2001 AMENDED IN SENATE APRIL 16, 2001 INTRODUCED BY Senator Ortiz FEBRUARY 22, 2001 An act to add and repeal Chapter 7 (commencing with Section 4099) of Part 1 of Division 4 of the Welfare and Institutions Code, relating to mental health, and making an appropriation therefor. (Approved by Governor October 10, 2001. Filed with Secretary of State October 10, 2001.) I am signing Senate Bill 639 which would require the California Health and Human Services Agency to develop a strategic plan for improving access to mental health services for persons with Alzheimer' s disease or related dementia. However, given the rapid decline of our economy and a budget shortfall of $1.1 billion through the first three months of this fiscal year alone, I have no choice but to oppose additional General Fund spending. I am directing the Health and Human Services Agency to develop the strategic plan within existing resources. GRAY DAVIS, Governor LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST SB 639, Ortiz. Alzheimer's disease and related disorders: demonstration projects. Existing law establishes a number of mental health programs administered by various state or local entities. This bill, until January 1, 2003, would require the California Health and Human Services Agency to develop a strategic plan for improving access to mental health services for people with Alzheimer' s disease or related dementia and to complete the plan and submit a report to the Governor and the Legislature no later than January 1, 2003. This bill would also appropriate, without regard to fiscal years, $85,000 from the General Fund to the agency for the purpose of implementing the bill. Appropriation: yes. THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS: SECTION 1. Chapter 7 (commencing with Section 4099) is added to Part 1 of Division 4 of the Welfare and Institutions Code, to read: CHAPTER 7. STRATEGIC PLAN FOR ALZHEIMER'S DISEASE AND RELATED DISORDERS 4099. The Legislature finds and declares all of the following: (a) There is no cure for Alzheimer's disease, a progressive neurological disease, that slowly robs its victims of their cognitive and physical abilities. (b) Seventy percent of persons with Alzheimer's disease reside at home in the community and rely on both formal and informal support to maintain dignity and independence. (c) The predictable progression of the disease eventually leads to cognitive, behavioral, and personality changes that may include psychiatric symptoms such as anxiety, depression, hallucinations, delusions, and agitation. (d) Both formal and informal caregivers must address increasingly complex needs that arise from the effects of the disease on the person and frequently find themselves faced with a crisis of care. (e) Persons who suffer from Alzheimer's disease and individuals whose symptoms are suggestive of a dementia-related condition, when in crisis, often present themselves in overcrowded emergency rooms, while others are identified by law enforcement, who do not have the training or expertise to assess the medical and cognitive condition of the individual and who do not have access to expert assistance. (f) There are numerous examples of avoidable incarceration, hospitalization, or placement in unnecessarily expensive and inappropriate institutional settings as a result of an episode that could have been stabilized with a rapid, interdisciplinary and coordinated crisis response. (g) Alzheimer's patients often encounter barriers to accessing effective services in the appropriate setting due to uncoordinated, limited, and exclusionary funding streams. (h) It is in the interest of the state to design and encourage more humane, effective, and efficient solutions to the significant caregiving crisis that arises from the progression of Alzheimer's disease and other related disorders. 4099.1. For purposes of this chapter, the following definitions apply: (a) "Alzheimer's disease or related dementia" means persons with Alzheimer's disease or related dementia or individuals whose symptoms are suggestive of a dementia-related condition. (b) "Caregivers" means both formal and informal caregivers. 4099.3. The California Health and Human Services Agency shall develop a strategic plan for improving access to mental health services by persons with Alzheimer's disease or related disorders, for treatable mental health conditions. The agency may use consultant services for this purpose. The plan shall be developed with consultation and collaboration with the agency's Alzheimer's Disease and Related Disorders Advisory Committee, the California Mental Health Planning Council, the State Department of Mental Health, the California Department of Aging, the State Department of Health Services, the California Mental Health Directors Association, the California Council of the Alzheimer's Association, and other departments and organizations, as deemed appropriate by the agency, with expertise and experience in the unique needs of this population. The plan shall be completed and a report submitted to the Governor and the Legislature no later than January 1, 2003. 4099.4. (a) This chapter shall become inoperative on January 1, 2003, and as of that date is repealed, unless a later enacted statute that is enacted before January 1, 2003, deletes or extends the dates on which it becomes inoperative and is repealed. (b) This chapter shall be implemented only to the extent that funds are appropriated for this purpose. SEC. 2. The sum of eighty-five thousand dollars ($85,000) is hereby appropriated, without regard to fiscal years, from the General Fund to the California Health and Human Services Agency, for the purposes of implementing Chapter 7 (commencing with Section 4099) of Part 1 of Division 4 of the Welfare and Institutions Code.