001214Onrolmstead

December 14, 2000
For Immediate Release
Contact: Paolo del Vecchio, (301) 443-2792

National Coalition Formed to Promote Community-based
Care for Persons With Mental Illness under
Landmark Supreme Court Decision

More than 40 federal agencies, national mental advocacy organizations, consumer groups and private sector companies met today for the first time at the National Press Club to launch a national coalition established to promote community-based care for persons with mental illness.

The meeting was sponsored by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Service Administration's (SAMHSA) Center for Mental Health Services (CMHS). Formation of this new coalition was part of the White House announcement on the 10^th Anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act of new measures promoting home and community based services for people with disabilities.

On June 22, 1999, the Supreme Court issued a landmark decision in the case of Olmstead vs.L.C. that under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), States are required to provide services to persons with disabilities in the most integrated community settings rather than in institutions. The Court upheld that the ADA prohibits the unjustified isolation of people with disabilities in institutions when those individuals can benefit from home and community-based services, choose to access such services, and State resources are available to support such services. The ruling reinforced the fundamental intent of the ADA, which is elimination of discrimination based on disability.

"This is a major and needed step to move the nation toward the goals set forth in the U.S. Supreme Court's Olmstead decision," stated Acting SAMHSA Administrator Joseph Autry III, M.D. "With access to needed medical and mental health services as well as supportive services such as housing and vocational rehabilitation, individuals with mental illnesses can thrive in their communities. This broad-based coalition will lead the way."

CMHS is providing $6.3 million to support this timely initiative focused on identifying and developing strategies to eliminate some of the known barriers to comprehensive community-based services such as:

Lack of adequate income and job opportunities
Lack of affordable and appropriate housing
Gaps in health care services systems
Community resistance to programs due to discrimination and stigma toward mental illness

During the first year of the project, the national coalition will provide leadership in the development of statewide coalitions to aid in the design and development of comprehensive community mental health service plans. Financial support will be given to all 50 States, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the Virgin Islands to support an Olmstead coordinator in each jurisdiction.

"This initiative will bolster State and community efforts to realize the needed array of services to support Americans with mental illnesses," said CMHS Director Bernard S. Arons, M.D.

The National Coalition is comprised of representatives of the Departments of Health and Human Services, Housing and Urban Development, Labor, Education, Justice, Transportation, Social Security, the President's Task Force on Employment of Adults with Disabilities, and the Veterans Administration, as well as community leaders from dozens of national organizations.

CMHS is a component of the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA). SAMHSA, a public health agency within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, is the lead federal agency for improving the quality and availability of substance abuse prevention, addiction treatment and mental health services in the United States. Information on SAMHSA's programs is available on the Internet at www.samhsa.gov. News media requests should be directed to Media Services at (800) 487-4890.

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