Public Policy
Over the past decade, some of NYAPRS' proudest achievements include:
RIGHTS:
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Seclusion and Restraint: In 1992, hundreds of NYAPRS members completed surveys for the NYS Commission on Quality of Care and spoke out on behalf of efforts that significantly reduced the use of S&R in state and local hospitals
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Anti-Stigma Efforts: NYAPRS members have engaged in countless public efforts to protest damaging public stereotypes and to fight bigotry and discrimination.
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Kendra's Law: NYAPRS members strongly oppose forced treatment, favoring choice and informed consent. In that spirit, we led the opposition to the Involuntary Outpatient Commitment program launched under Kendra's Law in 2000 and successfully fought to extend the legislature's oversight and require independent research that looked equally at the impact of voluntary engagement approaches in 2005.
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Electroshock Therapy Oversight/Informed Consent: In 2003, NYAPRS successfully convinced both houses of the Legislature to pass ECT Reporting legislation; our forceful public protest to the Governor's subsequent veto paved the way for OMH administrative actions that enhanced state oversight, reporting and protections that promote informed consent.
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Community Reinvestment Act: NYAPRS members' personal testimonials and "never-say-die" Capitol candlelight vigils played a key role in gaining approval for an initiative that has redirected over $180 million in new community services. Our subsequent strong support helped convince the Governor and the Legislature to approve 3 extensions of this landmark program.
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Funding for Rehabilitation, Peer Support and Employment: NYAPRS was successful in gaining a $1 million increase for clubhouse programs in 1992, and a $1.3 increase for peer services in 2002. We won several increases in PROS funding and formed a statewide Campaign for Employment that helped bring a $5 million Medicaid Infrastructure Grant (New York Makes Work Pay) to our state.
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Fighting Cuts: Throughout the past decade NYAPRS members have played pivotal roles in countless successful campaigns to avoid or restore cuts to the community mental health safety net.
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Cost of Living Adjustment: NYAPRS members played very public roles in the successful effort to gain several multi-year cost of living adjustments for the community mental health workforce.
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Mainstreaming of Rehabilitation: In 2001, a NYAPRS Medicaid Task Force capped several years of investigation and discussion by determining that a Medicaid-funded psychiatric rehabilitation model should be piloted to promote enhanced funding, valuing and availability of rehab services. This ultimately led to the development of OMH's Personalized Recovery Oriented Services (PROS) initiative.
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Adult Home Residents: NYAPRS Public Policy members and staff helped found the NYS Coalition for Adult Home Reform; Harvey Rosenthal was appointed to the Governor's Adult Home Workgroup, which successfully won the development of a new adult home case management/peer specialist model and approval for 2,000 new supportive housing beds.
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Prisoners with Psychiatric Disabilities: NYAPRS Public Policy members and staff worked in support of establishing a Medicaid Presumptive Eligibility program in 1997-2000, and helped lead MHASC's successful campaign to mandate alternatives to solitary confinement and other reforms supporting prisoners with psychiatric disabilities.
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Underserved Minorities: NYAPRS helped win the establishment of two Centers of Excellence in Cultural Competence.
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Transportation: NYAPRS members helped form and lead a NYC/NYS-wide coalition that won passage of the MTA Half Fare Fairness Legislation.
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Housing: NYAPRS has been an active member in the NY/NY Campaigns and the NYS Campaign for Mental Health Housing that have won funding for community housing for thousands of New Yorkers with psychiatric disabilities.
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Employment: NYAPRS members helped form and lead a cross-disability advocacy coalition that won approval of the Medicaid Buy-In program in 2002.
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Entitlements: NYAPRS partnered with our cross disability advocacy partners to successfully defeat proposed SSI COLA cuts in 2003 and 2009.
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Full Community Integration: NYAPRS members again joined with our cross disability partners to win passage of legislation creating New York's Most Integrated Setting Coordinating Council. Our staff and Board members have played active roles in support of the Council's efforts to produce a NYS Olmstead plan.
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Mental Health Coverage: Since the mid-1990's, NYAPRS members have been active members of coalitions that ultimately won passage of mental health parity legislation (Timothy's Law).
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Medication: NYAPRS has long fought to protect full access to Medicaid mental health and related medications.