Amendment #1468 to H4000

Commission on Strengthening the Adult Mental Health Continuum of Care

Ms. Domb of Amherst moves to amend the bill by adding the following section:

"SECTION XXXX. (a) There is hereby established a special commission to study and make recommendations on ways to strengthen the adult mental health continuum of care and address the financial sustainability of programming throughout the commonwealth to ensure continued delivery of services to relevant populations.

(b) The commission shall consist of the following 19 members: the chairs of the joint committee on mental health, substance use, and recovery, who shall serve as co-chairs; 1 member appointed by the speaker of the house of representatives; 1 member appointed by the senate president; the secretary of health and human services or designee; the commissioner of mental health or designee; the assistant secretary of MassHealth or designee; 3 members appointed by the governor who work in the field of behavioral health, 1 of whom shall have expertise providing behavioral health services in correctional settings, 1 of whom shall have expertise in addressing disparities in access to mental and behavioral health care for populations experiencing disproportionate barriers to care and 1 of whom shall have expertise in working with people with co-occuring mental health and substance use disorders; 1 member appointed by the secretary of health and human services who is a representative of a community behavioral health center; the chief justice of the trial court or designee; the executive director of the behavioral health workforce center in the health policy commission or designee; 1 member appointed by the National Alliance on Mental Illness of Massachusetts, Inc. who is a person with lived experience and who has received mental health services and supports across the continuum of care; 1 member appointed by the Massachusetts Organization for Addiction Recovery, Inc. who is a person with lived experience and who has received substance use services and supports across the continuum of care; 1 member who is a representative of the Massachusetts Association for Mental Health; 1 member who is a representative of the Association for Behavioral Healthcare, Inc.; 1 member who is a representative of the Massachusetts Association of Behavioral Health Systems, Inc.; and 1 member who is a representative of the Massachusetts Health and Hospital Association, Inc.

(c) The commission shall:

(i) determine the required capacity for statewide and regional acute psychiatric services, continuing care beds and community step-down services, including, but not limited to, adult community clinical services and programs for assertive community treatment, through the collection of data on wait time, census, the number of patients served, referral source and admission;

(ii) examine the role of community behavioral health centers in improving access to outpatient and diversionary behavioral health services and any gaps in access to such services;

(iii) identify a measurement system to be utilized to ensure that needs of individuals are matched to appropriate levels of service;

(iv) examine existing and anticipated barriers to the creation and maintenance of continuing care psychiatric beds, including, but not limited to, workforce and other challenges that reduce access to and utilization of such services;

(v) in consultation with the department of mental health and the health policy commission, collect and compare relevant cost data for behavioral health services across the continuum of care to determine the potential costs associated with clinically appropriate, medically necessary lower levels of care; and

(vi) include any other considerations determined to be relevant by the commission.

(d) The commission shall hold not less than 2 public hearings and accept public comment before filing its final report pursuant to subsection (e).

(e) The commission shall file a report and its recommendations, including any legislative or regulatory changes that may be necessary to implement the recommendations, with the clerks of the house of representatives and the senate not later than June 30, 2026.".

Additional co-sponsor(s) added to Amendment #1468 to H4000

Commission on Strengthening the Adult Mental Health Continuum of Care