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San Mateo County MHSA (Prop 63)

Overview

Mental Health Services Act (Prop 63)

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The passage of Proposition 63, known since November 2004 as the Mental Health Services Act (MHSA), provides the first opportunity in many years for increased funding, personnel and other resources to support County mental health programs and monitor progress toward statewide goals for children, transition-age youth, adults, older adults and families.

The Act addresses a broad continuum of prevention, early intervention and direct service needs and the necessary infrastructure, technology and training elements that will effectively support this system. We are thrilled to have you as a visitor, and hope you will want to become involved in MHSA planning!

Announcements

30-Day Public Comment Period Now Open for the Extension of two MHSA Innovation Projects 

On May 1st, the Mental Health and Substance Abuse Recovery Commission (MHSARC) voted to open a 30-day public comment period to approve a one year extension for two MHSA Innovation projects, at no additional cost. The project accomplishments and outcomes were presented to the MHSA Steering Committee in January and April.  See the presentations below to learn more:

Please email comments or questions to mhsa@smcgov.org or submit an optional Public Comment Form to 310 Harbor Blvd, Bldg E, Belmont CA 94002. 

MHSA Steering Committee Meeting 

The MHSA Steering Committee met on Monday April 22nd to provide comment and input on 1) the extension of two MHSA Innovation projects at no additional costs and 2) a proposed Plan to Spend for MHSA one-time available funding.  See the meeting materials below:

Given the feedback received,  the 30-day public comment for the Plan to Spend will be postponed.  Additional analysis and input will be conducted including targeted input sessions to further involve stakeholders and clients/family members and incorporating budget reduction impacts in the plan.

New MHSA Innovation Funding Cycle

We received 35 ideas for this MHSA Innovation funding cycle!  This level of response speaks to the need for innovation in serving some of our most vulnerable communities’ mental health needs. 

All submitted ideas were pre-screened against the criteria described in the Innovation Project Form. A selection committee, made up of diverse partners representing subject matter expertise in youth, adults and older adults, clients, peers, co-occurring, culturally-responsive community approaches, prioritized 5 ideas.  All ideas will be used to develop project proposals, which will be made available to a 30-day public comment period and subsequently submitted to the Board of Supervisors and the State Mental Health Services Oversight and Accountability Commission for approval.  
 

Congratulations to the San Mateo County Pride Center!

On March 28th, the Pride Center was approved for a two-year Innovation funding extension by the State of California Mental Health Services Oversight and Accountability Commission (MHSOAC).  View the Wellness Matters article for more information.

For the most current program-specific updates, which include MHSA funded programs, sign up to receive the BHRS e-journal, Wellness Matters and visit the BHRS Blog. Visit and subscribe to the BHRS Request for Proposal website to keep informed of funding opportunities .

If you have any comments or questions, please send them to mhsa@smcgov.org or you can submit an optional Public Comment Form to 310 Harbor Blvd, Bldg E, Belmont CA 94002.

MHSA Planning in San Mateo County

MHSA planning, implementation and updates happen on a Fiscal Year (FY) calendar July 1 – June 30. Counties are required to conduct a thorough Community Program Planning (CPP) process, submit a Three-Year Plan and Annual Updates.   

Current Three-Year Plan Due: December 2017
Current Three-Year Implementation Phase: July 1, 2017 through June 30, 2020
Annual Updates Due: December 2017, December 2018, December 2019
Next Three-Year Planning Phase: January 2020 – April 2020
Next Three-Year MHSA Plan Due: December 2020

MHSA Issue Resolution Process

An Issue Resolution Process (IRP) has been adopted to resolve specific MHSA issues related to: 

  1. The Community Program Planning (CPP) process
  2. Consistency between approved MHSA plans and program implementation
  3. The provision of MHSA-funded programs and services

In San Mateo County, the Office of Consumer and Family Affairs (OCFA) manages service/treatment grievances for BHRS and therefore MHSA issues will be routed through the formal OCFA Grievance process. The MHSA IRP is focused on grievances related to the planning and implementation of MHSA.

Community Program Planning (CPP) Process

How to Give Public Comment

Check out the How to Give Public Comment quick tips- adapted from CAMHPRO’s Delivering the ABC’s of Advocacy training, camhpro.org

Assembly Bill (AB) 114 Plan to Spend Reallocated Funds 

The San Mateo County’s proposed AB 114 Plan, which includes an Innovation (INN) Plan on technology-based behavioral health interventions, was approved by the our Board of Supervisors on August 7, 2018. Materials and details are available below.

Prevention & Early Intervention (PEI) Planning

During the most recent community planning process, the need to convene a taskforce of PEI experts, leaders, clients/consumers and family, and community members to develop specific strategic and programmatic recommendations for children 0-25, was identified. Between October-December 2017, a PEI Ages 0-25 special taskforce was convened.   

Priority Matrix and Agreement Results

MHSA Three Year Plan FY 17/18 through FY 19/20

About 300 clients, families, advocates, community members and providers participated in a series of sessions to launch the MHSA 3-Year Planning process and to share their stories and public comments in support of 17 priority recommendations for potential MHSA funding.  

See the following clips of public comments from our top three prioritized recommendations:

  • Ziomara Ochoa and Yolanda Novelo, Coastside CSA: Mobile mental health and wellness services to expand access to Coastside behavioral health clients and families
  • Kava Tulua, One East Palo Alto and Mary Bier, North County Outreach Collaborative: Expansion of culturally responsive resources and outreach strategies to effectively link high-risk, isolated and emerging cultural and ethnic groups to needed services
  • Bruce Adams and Mike Krechevsky, PREP San Mateo:  After-care services for early psychosis treatment alumni that includes booster sessions and re-engagement, maintenance and family navigator support

 

Steering Committee

The MHSA Steering Committee makes recommendations about the planning and services development process of MHSA. As a group, the MHSA Steering Committee assure that MHSA planning reflects local diverse needs and priorities, contains the appropriate balance of services within available resources and meets the criteria and goals established. View the current Steering Committee Membership list and the Roles and Responsibilities document for more details.

If you are interested in joining, please complete a Steering Committee Application:

Download the application and submit by email to mhsa@smcgov.org.

Evaluation

Innovation (INN)

Year 2 Evaluation Reports for three of our MHSA Innovation projects are now available: 

Year 1 Evaluation Reports:

Workforce Education and Training (WET)

MHSA WET strategies received a one-time funding allocation in Fiscal Years 2006 to 2008, with a ten-year timeframe to expend the allocated funds. 

Outreach Collaboratives

In Fiscal Year (FY) 15-16, Harder+Company Community Research, was contracted to evaluate the MHSA Outreach Collaboratives.  

Prevention & Early Intervention Programs Evaluation

In Fiscal Year (FY) 15-16, Harder+Company Community Research, was contracted to develop an impact report for the Health Equity Initiatives.  

In July 2013, we set out to evaluate Prevention & Early Intervention (PEI) programs to understand the impact these programs are having in terms of promoting mental health, reducing the risk of mental illness, and decreasing the severity and negative consequences associated with onset of mental illness. 

Full Service Partnership Qualitative Evaluation

The American Institutes for Research (AIR) supports evaluation and analyses of the San Mateo County FSP Programs outcomes.  The full FSP outcome reports are available.

In 2014, our Full Service Partnership (FSP) programs were evaluated to understand how well FSPs are working from the perspective of administrators, providers and consumers/clients.

Statewide MHSA Evaluation Reports Released

Plans, Updates and Revenue & Expenditure Reports

MHSA Three-Year Plan & Annual Update

Annual Revenue and Expenditure Reports (RER)

MHSA components

Community Services & Supports (CSS)

CSS activities focus on providing direct services and treatment to people of all ages living with serious mental illness. At least 51% of CSS dollars have to be spent on full service partnerships, which provide 24/7 wraparound services.

Previous Years:

Prevention & Early Intervention (PEI)

PEI activities target individuals of all ages prior to the onset of mental illness, with the one exception of programs focusing on early onset of psychotic disorders. Learn more about the Office of Diversity and Equity, the Stigma Free San Mateo County; the Suicide Prevention Committee; Prevention & Recovery in Early Psychosis (PREP); Youth Crisis Intervention; and the San Mateo County Mental Health Assessment and Referral Team (SMART). MHSA PEI also funds the following Community Interventions for School Age and TAY programs:

  • Early Childhood Community Team – supporting social emotional development in child care settings by providing consultation to child care providers;
  • Seeking Safety – helping people attain safety from trauma/PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder) and substance abuse
  • Project SUCCESS – preventing and reducing substance use and abuse and associated behavioral issues among high risk, multi-problem adolescents.
  • Teaching Pro-Social Skills -  addressing the social skills needs of students in public elementary schools who display aggression or other problem behaviors. 

Previous Years

Capital Facilities & Information Technology (CF & IT)

CF&IT component funded eClinical Care, an integrated business and clinical information system (electronic health record) as well as ongoing technical support.

Housing

The MHSA Housing Program funds permanent supportive housing for individuals with severe mental illness and that meet the MHSA eligibility criteria as homeless or at-risk of being homeless.

The MHSA Housing Program was established to create permanent supportive housing for individuals with serious mental illness who are homeless or at risk of homelessness, and are enrolled in Full Service Partnerships, receiving wraparound services and supports. Since 2006, the funding has supported 62 housing units across four housing developments in Redwood City, South San Francisco, San Mateo and North Fair Oaks community.

Most recently, BHRS contributed the last of the MHSA Housing dollars, about $1.1 million, to the Affordable Housing Fund administered by the Department of Housing, which led to 12 additional MHSA units expected in 2018 .

Visit our MHSA Housing Program for more information.

Innovation (INN)

The MHSA INN component allows counties to apply for funds for innovative projects that are designed and implemented for a defined time period and evaluated to develop new best practices in mental health services and supports.

Behavioral Health Technology-based Interventions

San Mateo County joined a statewide collaborative to pilot behavioral helth online apps as a complimentary support system offering a
bridge to care and removing some barriers clients or family members may face when seeking conventional mental health services.  Advisory Committees for both older adults and transition age youth have started meeting to guide the implementation, customization and evaluation of this project.  You can contact Brittany Ganguly at bganguly@smcgov.org to learn more and/or join the committee(s). 

To learn more about the Tech Suite, you can view the approved plan, presentations and other materials below:

Other Current INN Projects

The Community Program Planning (CPP) process to develop the MHSA Three-Year Plan, 2014-2017, included generating ideas for innovative projects. The MHSA Steering Committee prioritized 5 Innovation Projects for possible funding, a Letter of Interest process further identified capacity and interest.  In July 2016, three projects were approved by the state to move forward for implementation:

San Mateo County Total Wellness

From 2010 through June 2015, BHRS built on several emerging, innovative practices for mental health and physical health integration:

Workforce Education & Training (WET)

WET programming includes training, education, programs and policies to assist in the engagement and selection of a diverse workforce that includes consumers, families, and community members and schools. Visit the BHRS WET website to learn more about the programs and services.

MHSA WET received one-time funding from MHSA for up to 10 years, which is ending in June 2018 for San Mateo County.  We are currently working with an independent contractor to develop a 10 year MHSA WET impact report and a sustainability plan for evaluation of the MHSA INN projects.  The planning process has begun and we will share updates as they become available.

Previous Years

Commands