ADVOCACY NEWS FROM NAMI NEW JERSEY:
1. MENTAL ILLNESS AND THE LAW
2. PAAD TO MATCH RECIPIENTS TO MEDICARE PRESCRIPTION PLANS
3. THE TERRIBLE DILEMMA OF PARENTS OF MENTALLY ILL TEENS
4. STUDY FINDS HIGHER COSTS FOR CAREGIVERS
5. CURRENT-YEAR STATE REVENUES REBOUND, DESPITE DEBT WOES
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MENTAL ILLNESS AND THE LAW - ACTION
NEEDED (see below)
When it comes to people found not guilty by reason of insanity,
judges must strike a delicate balance between the public's
safety and infringement upon a person's liberty and psychiatric
treatment, said John "Kip" Cornwell, associate
dean at Seton Hall University School of Law in Newark. "You
are forced to either institutionalize somebody, which would
carry all the restrictions and expense that entails, or
let someone go back into the community with virtually no
enforceable supervision," Cornwell said. "There
is a large void in the middle."
See the full story:
http://www.nj.com/news/ledger/index.ssf?/base/news-12/1194845799199800.xml&coll=1
Read the Editorial:
http://www.nj.com/opinion/ledger/editorials/index.ssf?/base/news-2/1194932881300870.xml&coll=1
NAMI NJ Letter in the Home News:
http://www.thnt.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071125/OPINION02/711250301/1080
Write the Assembly Human Services
Committee TODAY:
http://www.naminj.org/advocacy/alerts/old_alerts/AlertNov26_07_InvoluntaryOutpatient.htm
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PAAD TO MATCH RECIPIENTS TO MEDICARE PRESCRIPTION PLANS
The state is sending letters to 114,000 people in the Prescription
Assistance to the Aged and Disabled (PAAD) program to tell
them the name of their 2008 Medicare Part D prescription
plan. A state computer has matched people in PAAD with the
best Medicare Part D plan, considering the drugs they take
and the pharmacies they generally use, health officials
said. The state PAAD program will continue to provide "wrap-around
coverage" to cover what the federal Part D plan does
not.
Read the full story:
http://www.nj.com/starledger/stories/index.ssf?/base/news-8/1195537597212840.xml&coll=1
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THE TERRIBLE DILEMMA OF PARENTS OF MENTALLY ILL TEENS
What are parents and teachers supposed to do when children
are dangerously out of control? Virtually all social workers
and psychiatrists tell parents whose aggression-prone adolescents
threaten imminent violence the same thing: call 911. But
calling 911 could get your sick teen killed.
See the Star Ledger Perspective piece:
http://www.nj.com/opinion/ledger/perspective/index.ssf?/base/news-1/11953647383720.xml&coll=1
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STUDY FINDS HIGHER COSTS FOR CAREGIVERS
The out-of-pocket cost of caring for an aging parent or
spouse averages about $5,500 a year, according to the nation's
first in-depth study of such expenses, a sum that is more
than double previous estimates and more than the average
American household spends annually on health care and entertainment
combined.
Family members responsible for ailing loved ones provide
not only "hands on" care but often reach into
their own pockets to pay for many other expenses of care
recipients, including groceries, household goods, drugs,
medical co-payments and transportation. That nudges the
average cost of providing long-distance care to $8,728 a
year.
Read more:
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/11/19/us/19caregiver.html
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CURRENT-YEAR STATE REVENUES REBOUND, DESPITE DEBT WOES
A report released yesterday painted a surprisingly rosy
picture of the state's immediate budget outlook even as
state legislators are debating the best way to whittle down
the state's heavy debt burden. New Jersey officials are
projecting a potential shortfall of up to $3 billion next
year, and Gov. Jon Corzine has asked departments to find
potential cuts equal to about 9 percent of the total budget
to help close the gap.
Read more:
http://www.nj.com/statehouse/ledger/index.ssf?/base/news-0/1195277820118950.xml&coll=1
