ADVOCACY NEWS FROM NAMI NEW JERSEY :
1. SOMERSET HOSPITAL TO REOPEN PSYCH UNIT
2. HELP SOUGHT FOR ILL INMATES
3. COUNTY WANTS MENTALLY ILL INMATES MOVED
4. NEW PSYCHIATRIC HOSPITAL CLOSER TO REALITY
5. GREYSTONE RECEIVES A MIXED REVIEW
6. SENATE VOTES IN FAVOR OF THE FAMILY OPPORTUNITY ACT
7. SENATE TACKLES SPECIAL-EDUCATION LAW
8. PFIZER PAYING $430M IN OFF-LABEL DRUG CASE
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SOMERSET HOSPITAL TO REOPEN PSYCH UNIT
Following a long battle by NAMI advocates Somerset Medical Center announced that it will reopen the psychiatric unit it improperly shut down in October, now that it has received state approval of a corrective action plan to do so, officials said yesterday.
But because the Somerville hospital took so long to submit an acceptable corrective plan, it faces nearly $1 million in fines that have been accruing daily for noncompliance
Read the complete story:
http://www.nj.com/news/ledger/somerset/index.ssf?/base/news-2/108400512893070.xml
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HELP SOUGHT FOR ILL INMATES
Panel OKs task force to solve jail problem
In the wake of the murder of Camden County Jail inmate Joel Seidel, a state Assembly committee voted unanimously Thursday for legislation that would create a 14-member task force to find safer and better places to house and treat nonviolent, mentally ill people. Many of them are low-level offenders who are in danger and don't belong in jails that lack the facilities to treat them, said Assemblywoman Mary Previte, D-Haddonfield.
Read Alan Guenther's Courier Post story:
http://www.courierpostonline.com/news/southjersey/m051404c.htm
Read the bill text:
http://www.njleg.state.nj.us/2004/Bills/A3000/2518_I1.HTM
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COUNTY WANTS MENTALLY ILL INMATES MOVED
Legal action considered against state for jail population
Morris County is pressing the state to take some of its mentally ill inmates out of the county jail and place them in a secure state hospital, with a threat of legal action if the state fails to respond.
One-third of the jail's 260 inmates have been diagnosed with mental illness, Morris County Sheriff Edward Rochford said in a letter to state Human Services Commissioner James Davy, calling it a "matter of grave concern to me."
Read Larry Ragonese's Star Ledger report:
http://www.nj.com/news/ledger/morris/index.ssf?/base/news-3/1083137825248291.xml
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NEW PSYCHIATRIC HOSPITAL CLOSER TO REALITY
County exec says 156-bed facility in Cedar Grove could open in'06
For two decades, Regina Palo pushed Essex County to repair or replace its crumbling psychiatric hospital in Cedar Grove, where patients spent summers without central air conditioning and dealt with insufficient staff and supplies.
Yesterday, Palo was moved to tears as County Executive Joseph DiVincenzo announced plans to hire an architectural firm to design a new hospital that should be completed by November 2006.
Read the story:
http://www.nj.com/news/ledger/essex/index.ssf?/base/news-5/108368019440030.xml
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GREYSTONE RECEIVES A MIXED REVIEW
Panel: Secrecy gone, but care issues linger
The veil of secrecy has been lifted at Greystone Park Psychiatric Hospital , with officials more open to sharing information and more cooperative with investigators. But there are still patient care problems and substandard living conditions at the state hospital, according to the annual report of a court-appointed Greystone watchdog.
Read the Star Ledger story:
http://www.nj.com/news/ledger/morris/index.ssf?/base/news-3/108368012040030.xml
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SENATE VOTES IN FAVOR OF THE FAMILY OPPORTUNITY ACT
NAMI applauds the Senate for voting in favor of the Family Opportunity Act (FOA - S.622) on Thursday, May 6th. FOA restores hope to families with children with serious mental illnesses by allowing states to offer Medicaid to children with severe disabilities living in families with incomes up to 250% of poverty level. A more detailed summary of the Family Opportunity Act can be reviewed on the NAMI web site at http://www.nami.org
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SENATE TACKLES SPECIAL-EDUCATION LAW
Plan aids children sooner while rejecting mandatory spending increases
The Senate voted yesterday to make the first major changes in special-education law in seven years, aiming to get help earlier to struggling children, give teachers more freedom to discipline students and reduce tensions between parents and schools.
The main dispute was over money, with senators overwhelmingly agreeing to allow accelerated spending in coming years but rejecting an attempt to make the increases mandatory.
Read the AP report:
http://www.nj.com/news/ledger/index.ssf?/base/news-15/1084515349311300.xml
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PFIZER PAYING $430M IN OFF-LABEL DRUG CASE
A decade ago, Warner-Lambert, the big drug maker formerly based in Morris Plains , launched a promising medicine called Neurontin. Sales representatives began promoting Neurontin to doctors as a treatment for a host of ailments from bipolar mental disorder to Lou Gehrig's Disease to attention deficit disorder. There was only one problem: The Food and Drug Administration never formally approved Neurontin for any use other than as a treatment for epilepsy patients.
Read more:
http://www.nj.com/business/ledger/index.ssf?/base/business-0/1084515241311300.xml
