Monday, February 15, 2010

The Commission for Mental Health, Developmental Disabilities and Substance Abuse Services Meets Next Week

The Commission meets on Thursday, February 25, 2010 at 8:30 am. The meetings are held at the Clarion Hotel, 320 Hillsborough Street, Raleigh.

The agenda includes: an Overview of the NC Open Meetings Law by Lisa Corbett, Assistant Attorney General with the NC Department of Justice; Division Director's Reports by Flo Stein, Chief, Community Policy Management Section and Jim Jarrard, Chief, Resource and Regulatory Management Section; Division Director's Report by Luckey Welsh, State Operated Healthcare Facilities; CABHA and MH/DD/SA Services by Michael Watson, Assistant Secretary; Rule Committee Report; Advisory Committee Report; Proposed Amendment of 10A NCAC 26F .0104 & .0105 – Drug Schedule III and IV; Proposed Amendment of 10A NCAC 27G .3800 – Substance Abuse Services for DWI Offenders; Update on Pilot Program to Prevent Smoking in Alcohol and Drug Abuse Treatment Centers (ADATCs); The Role of the Rules Review Commission in the Rulemaking Process.

Thursday, February 11, 2010

2/15/2010 North Carolina Register

You can view the entire Register online. Items of interest:

Building Code Council
The NC Building Code Council published a Notice of Rule Making Proceedings and Public Hearing. Among the matters published is a request to adopt the 2009 International Codes with NC Amendments as the 2012 NC State Building Codes. The proposed NC Amendments, which were produced by Ad Hoc Committees of the Building Code Council, will be posted online prior to 5/17/2010 for public review and comment. Please note that this includes the Accessibility Code of the International Building Code. Comments will be accepted until July 16, 2010.

I participated in the Ad Hoc Committee on Accessibility and the committee agreed upon several amendments to the International Building Code. I will continue to track this as it moves forward.

North Carolina State Board of Elections
The Board of Elections published notice of the adoption of new voter registration guidelines. 2009 NC Session Laws 541 mandated a policy for preregistration of 16 and 17 year olds in NC. N.C.G.S. 163-82.1, -82.4(d), and -82.6(f). The notice outlines how preregistrations should be handled. Upon reaching the age of eligibility, the county board shall automatically register the preregistrant. Additionally, the county board of elections shall conduct voter registration and preregistration drives at public high schools during Citizens' Voter Registration Month.

2/10/2010 MH/DD/SAS LOC

The Joint Legislative Oversight Committee on Mental Health, Developmental Disabilities and Substance Abuse Services met on 2/10. The handouts are online here. I have a few additional notes below.

Secretary Cansler's Remarks
The Secretary is seeking more consumer input from the community. Related to this, they are working on changes to the state and local CFACs (no details were given).

He also discussed the staffing difficulties raised by the non-recurring nature of the funds for Dix hospital - they are running a $30 mil deficit on the facilities.

He also spoke about Joshua S., the boy with a developmental disability who sat at the Wake LME Crisis unit for days waiting for a bed in a psychiatric hospital. He addressed the inappropriate nature of a psychiatric facility for this boy, and announced that they are converting 6 beds at Murdoch for a crisis respite unit (short-term respite only).

Plans for Development & Implementation of the Tiered CAP-MR/DD Waiver
Instead of four waivers, the Department is now planning to implement three waivers, with one waiver having two "bands": Supports (up to $17,500), Comprehensive (Band A - $17,501 - $45,000; Band B - $45,001 - $75,000), and Community Intensive ($75,001 $135,000). The handouts at the link above have information about the intensity of need and services available in each waiver.

Friday, February 5, 2010