NAMI Texas #Vote4MentalHealth Region 9 State Candidate Questionnaire For NAMI Affiliates: NAMI Greater Corpus Christi, NAMI Rio Grande Valley, and NAMI Laredo The candidates were asked the following open-ended questions: 1. Texas is experiencing a shortage of mental health and addiction care providers, especially in rural and underserved areas. How will you make sure more people have access to mental health treatment and services? 2. State and federal law requires mental health parity, or the equal treatment of mental health conditions and substance During February 2020 and September-October 2020, NAMI use disorders, compared to physical health conditions, in Texas’ Public Policy Team and our volunteers sent out a six- insurance plans. However, individuals in Texas still often question mental health policy questionnaire via Google Forms to receive unequal coverage for mental health treatment and every individual running for a state legislative seat in a contested services. What will you do to improve coverage for race. Candidates were also provided information on NAMI Texas’ mental health care? public policy platform. We are only sharing the results for 3. At least 30% of individuals in local Texas jails have a candidates who are in a contested race. If we have not received a severe mental illness, and more than half of justice- completed questionnaire from a candidate, we will indicate that we involved individuals nationwide have at least one mental have not received a response yet. Reminders were sent on a weekly health condition. What will you do to divert people with basis to candidates who had not yet responded to the mental illness from the criminal justice system? questionnaire. 4. Almost a quarter of individuals experiencing homelessness have a severe mental illness, and mental NAMI Texas is a non-partisan 501(c)(3) non-profit illness has been identified as the third leading cause of organization. We DO NOT endorse any candidates, or rank or alter homelessness nationwide. How will you help people with their answers in any way. We provide this information to educate mental illness who are struggling with housing? you on where candidates in your district stand on key mental 5. Half of mental health conditions begin by the age of 14 health issues and let you use this information to inform your vote and 75% begin by the age of 24, but these issues often go rd on November 3 . A candidate’s inclusion of answers here does not undetected and untreated until they reach a crisis point. indicate a preference or endorsement by NAMI Texas. Inclusion in How will you promote earlier intervention for people this guide does not indicate that NAMI Texas endorses any experiencing mental illness? candidate's positions provided in the questionnaire. We encourage 6. Texas has the highest uninsured rate in the country and NAMI members and mental health advocates to continue asking has faced serious challenges in ensuring individuals in important questions of legislative and local candidates and underserved areas have access to health care. What will #Vote4MentalHealth! you do to improve access to health care and reduce our high uninsured rate? More information on the #Vote4MentalHealth campaign can be found at namitexas.org/vote4mentalhealth-texas. NAMI Texas #Vote4MentalHealth Region 9 State Candidate Questionnaire For NAMI Affiliates: NAMI Greater Corpus Christi, NAMI Rio Grande Valley, and NAMI Laredo Senate District 18 to cope with the world. Then the state needs programs to train Lois Kolkhorst (R, Incumbent) them for some way of supporting themselves which would bring Lois Kolkhorst has not responded to the questionnaire yet. about self worth and personal value. 4. Housing: Andrew Carnegie said that a wise man surrounds Michael Antalan (D) himself with people who are smarter than he is. We need to have a Michael Antalan has not responded to the questionnaire yet. symposium of the brightest minds on mental health and also finance to discuss how to best house and support people who need extra help. Senate District 20 5. Early Intervention: We need to de-stigmatize the idea of Juan "Chuy" Hinojosa (D, Incumbent) asking for help. We need let young adults know that we all go Juan "Chuy" Hinojosa has not responded to the questionnaire yet. through crisis and that by seeking help early that we can acquire the tools needed to address our issues before they grow to be Judith Cutright (R) insurmountable. Judith Cutright has not responded to the questionnaire yet. 6. Access to Health Care: Nurse:patient ratios— these were raised several years back, resulting in nurses leaving, hospital healthcare Senate District 21 mainly, in droves. These ratios are unsafe and unrealistic Judith Zaffirini (D, Incumbent) expectation to provide quality patient care. Most of our large cities Judith Zaffirini has not responded to the questionnaire yet. have programs in High School geared toward healthcare to start more students on a pathway towards becoming nurses. We need Frank Pomeroy (R) these programs in rural areas. Rural areas are hit hard with 1. System Capacity: We need to incentivize mental health care healthcare shortages, and it is difficult to find employees locally. workers to make the choice to open facilities in rural areas. This We also need to have a conversation with educated nurses and would provide more access and less migrating to the urban areas. doctors and talk about how to both partner with faith based We also need to promote the idea better that asking for therapy is initiatives and audit the existing bureaucracy that hinders the not going to be used against individuals at a later date. health care industry. 2. Mental Health Coverage/Parity: I believe that the entire insurance program needs to be placed on the table and the most Senate District 27 intelligent minds within the medical disciplines need to come Eddie Lucio Jr. (D, Incumbent) together, and discuss together without political agendas, as to how 1. System Capacity: Addressing the mental health needs of to help all of healthcare in the state, which includes mental health. Texans in need has been a passion of mine. That is why during the 3. Criminal Justice: It is no secret that we need justice reforms in 2017 Session, I worked with my colleagues in the Legislature to our country. I think again we need to incentivize therapist to take begin to address the health care shortage in Texas. part within the judicial system to help non violent criminals be able NAMI Texas #Vote4MentalHealth Region 9 State Candidate Questionnaire For NAMI Affiliates: NAMI Greater Corpus Christi, NAMI Rio Grande Valley, and NAMI Laredo In fact, I co-authored Senate Bill 1107 to provide more access to mental health treatment and services to everyone in the state. This doctors via telemedicine and to create a clear and accountable can be done by having increased collaboratives with our hospitals, regulatory structure regarding the establishment of a valid treatment centers, mental health professions. practitioner-patient relationship via telemedicine. We also updated the guidelines governing telemedicine to allow the creation of 2. Mental Health Coverage/Parity: First we need to have greater valid practitioner-patient relationship in a telemedicine increased access and make more mental health services available. encounter. We also need to work with our Managed Care Organizations to ensure that those who need mental health treatment and services We also took some positives steps forward to address the shortage are not denied care by implementing the right reforms, initiatives, of psychiatrists. As you are aware, by some reports, there are less and oversight to achieve that goal. than 2,000 psychiatrists actively licensed and offering direct care in Texas. As of January 2015, over two-thirds of the state’s Additionally, I plan to provide a Task Force of Mental Health counties were designated as Mental Health Professional Shortage Patient Advocates to the HHSC so that the overseeing state agency Areas. gets just-in-time feedback of how those needing mental health services are being treated to ensure that we truly have improved Because we have geographic areas in our state with a ratio of coverage for mental health care. 30,000 people to one psychiatrist, I co-authored Senate Bill 674 in 2017 to create an expedited licensing process for out of-state 3. Criminal Justice: This is a very good question and something I psychiatrists. With this bill, we directed the Texas Medical Board have been working on over the years. That is why I supported will create an expedited licensing process for applicants who hold voted in favor of Senate Bill 292 which became law in 2017. With an unrestricted license to practice medicine issued in another state, this bill, HHSC is directed to establish a grant program to reduce are board certified in psychiatry, and meet other general eligibility recidivism, arrest, and incarceration among individuals with requirements. mental illness and to reduce wait time for forensic commitment to a state hospital. With this bill, our state will be providing a grant to Additionally, I authored SB 578 and also co-authored SB 27 in a county-based community collaborative in the most populous 2017. Both of these bills address access to mental health providers counties in the state for the same purpose. As supporters of the for our veterans and their families. Through SB 27’s Legislator’s efforts have stated, this will help the state by reducing implementation, the Texas Health and Human Services the number of people with mental illness in county jails and Commission (HHSC) opened up six sites in different areas of the thereby reducing the waiting time for a forensic commitment to a state to increase access to clinical mental health treatment for state hospital veterans, members of our armed forces, and their families.