OLYMPIA -- So far, eight of 39 Washington State counties have taken advantage of a new state law that provides counties with an option for funding mental health and chemical dependency services, according to a recent report.

• Counties adopting the new funding strategy, which calls for an increase in the sales tax of 0.1 percent, were Clallam, Clark, Island, Jefferson, King, Okanogan, Skagit, and Spokane.
• Another five counties are currently considering passing the tax. They are Lewis, San Juan, Snohomish, Whatcom, and Yakima.

"The need for and benefit of mental health and chemical dependency treatment substantially contributed to passage of the measure," says Anne Strode, a research associate with the Washington Institute for Mental Health Research and Training in Spokane (WIMHRT East). Strode authored the report.

"The predominant challenge for proponents of this funding option has been compiling the data to illustrate the cost benefit to the public and county commissioners. They need to show how the tax would allow the service delivery system to more adequately serve those in need, and ultimately lead to cost savings."

Projected revenues for counties that passed the sales tax option ranged from $250,000 in Okanogan County to $48 million in King County. Planned services included alternative courts and an array of mental health and chemical dependency treatment options.

According to the report, county representatives saw the funding strategy as a way to augment federal and state money.

Increasing numbers of people have become homeless, and psychiatric inpatient hospitalization rates have exceeded projections in many areas of the state. Regional Support Networks have been penalized for using too many hospital bed days because they were not able to treat people locally. Increasing numbers of people have also ended up in jail and local hospital emergency rooms as a consequence of their illnesses.

The report details how counties passing the sales tax provision successfully provided adequate data to document their needs and win wide public support. Active stakeholders helped educate the public and local governmental boards.

In most cases, public hearings were held in lieu of an actual public vote. Six of the eight counties passing the sales tax did so directly through their County Boards of Commissioners. King County adopted the measure by vote of the County Council. Spokane County put the measure on the ballot.

BACKGROUND: The Mental Health Transformation Project is a five-year project funded by a grant from the federal Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) to support mental health infrastructure and service delivery improvement activities. A preventive approach has been identified as one of the critical components to that effort.

The grant is a direct result of the move toward recovery-oriented, consumer- and family-driven mental health priorities identified by the President's New Freedom Commission.

COMING UP:

Mental Health Transformation Project to sponsor Prevention Summit in May The Prevention Summit is set for Tuesday, May 13, at the Doubletree Inn in Tukwila, WA. For mental health advocates, key partners, policy makers, community representatives, and interested citizens, the Prevention Summit will continue the effort to guide Washington State toward a system that promotes mental health, intervenes early, and addresses the devastating impacts of mental illness. Visit http://mhtransformation.wa.gov/MHTG/prevsummit.shtml for more information.

FOR ADDITIONAL BACKGROUND, CONTACT:

David Brenna, Senior Policy Advisor, MHTG project, 360-902-8456

Jeff Pike, Communications, MHTG project, 360-902-7697 or 360-725-1011

Jim Stevenson, Communications Director, HRSA, DSHS, 360-902-7604 (Pager: 360-971-4067).