HB 18 Narrowly passes the Committee, heads to the House floor

A message from our Executive Director 

HB 18 Medicaid Preferred Drug List Amendments (PDL) Update: 

On 02/17/2016, Rep. Ward offered a substitute bill which would remove long acting injectables from consideration on the PDL, meaning, there will be open access to those meds while the rest of the mental health meds will be subject to the PDL and Prior-Authorization process.

The bill passed out of Health and Human Services Committee by a hair. Votes were 5 and 5 until Rep. Chavez-Houck ran into committee to tip the scales. Votes ended in favor 6 to 5 with 1 absent.

I assure you, this is not over. There is a long way for this bill to travel. It now goes to the House Floor. I encourage you all to email and call your representative, encouraging them to VOTE NO on HB18. Should the bill make it's way out of the house, it will go to the Senate Health and Human Services Committee before it can move to the Senate Floor.

Thank you all for following this bill and for talking to your representatives! It is so important that you stay involved and continue to education our legislators. Find out your legislator here 

You who are living with a mental illness, you are my heroes! You who are fighting for your loved one's wellness, you too are my heroes! We are not weak, we are not victims, we are strong, we are fighters, we fight everyday for our well being and will fight anyone or anything standing in our way.

Sincerely,

Jamie Justice 

HB 18 was held in Committee

House Bill 18 was held in Committee

The House Health and Human Services Committee  listened to people who came to speak in favor of the bill. We are grateful to our Executive Director, Jamie Justice, who is advocating diligently on behalf of NAMI’s community and making sure our voices are being heard. After much deliberation, the Committee decided to hold the bill in the committee until the Commission on Criminal and Juvenile Justice Committee (CCJJ) takes a position on the bill. CCJJ has major concerns about the bill given that there is evidence in other states where this kind of legislation negatively impacts those with serious mental illness and drives up incarceration rates. Results that work directly against CCJJ’s efforts to redirect those who are nonviolent offenders with mental illness away from jails and prison and into treatment.


We also want to thank those who took time off work and away from their families to testify against the bill! There is so much power in telling your stories and educating our law makers about what it’s really like for individuals and families, not what those in power believe are happening.‪#‎mentalhealthUT‬

Defeating this bill will not happen without all of your continued support, efforts, emails, phone calls, and presence! The Health and Human Services Committee will likely hear this bill again this week.
It is not over yet, but yesterday’s outcome was a success! 

We will keep you post it.
You can access the committees’ audio link for today at this link http://goo.gl/cehX1F . 

‪#‎utpol‬  ‪#‎UTLeg‬‪# ‎mentalhealthmatters‬ #mentalhealthUT 

NAMI Utah Call to Social Media Action - 02.08.2016

NAMI Utah Call to Social Media Action - 02.08.2016

Fiscal Note       2016-2017 FY Utah Budget   NAMI Utah Position on PDL   Open Access

House Bill 18, sponsored by Representative Raymond Ward, would remove the Medicaid Preferred Drug List (PDL) exemption for psychotropic drug classes, placing the most vulnerable among us at risk for possible negative repercussions, including the state’s homeless population.

H.B. 18 Medicaid Preferred Drug List will be heard in the House Health and Human Services Committee today, Monday, Feb. 8, between 3:40 and 6:00 p.m.

To help shine a light on this bill, we encourage you to share the following suggested posts and hashtags in advance of today’s meeting.

Hashtags:

#BlockUTHB18 #utleg #mentalhealthmatters #utpol #mentalhealthUT

Suggested Tweets/Instagram Copy

I trust my #UTdoctor, not #UTLeg, to make the best medical decisions for #mentalhealthUT. #BlockUTHB18 #mentalhealthmatters #UTpol 

Don’t limit my ability as a #UTdoctor to prescribe the most effective drugs to my patients. ‪#‎mentalhealthmatters ‪#‎utpol ‪#‎mentalhealthUT ‪#‎BlockUTHB18 #UTLeg

Facebook Posts

H.B. 18 Medicaid Preferred Drug List will be heard in the House Health and Human Services Committee today, Monday, Feb. 8, between 3:40 and 6:00 p.m. Let’s fill the room. ‪#‎mentalhealthmatters ‪#‎utpol ‪#‎mentalhealthUT ‪#‎BlockUTHB18 #UTLeg #mentalhealthmatters

HB18 seeks to restrict access to what a team of fewer than 25 committee members determines to be "too expensive." ‪#‎utleg please listen to the experts on this one.


‪#‎utpol ‪#‎mentalhealthUT ‪#‎BlockUTHB18 #UTLeg #mentalhealthmatters


So many bills fly unnoticed through the Utah Legislature during its warp-speed 45-day session. H.B. 18 has been defeated multiple times, yet still comes up each session. Reach out to your legislator and let them know you do not support trying to save a few dollars on the backs of Utah's most fragile population. They'll only listen if we speak up! ‪#‎utpol ‪#‎mentalhealthUT ‪#‎BlockUTHB18 #UTLeg #mentalhealthmatters