NEWSLETTER
Volume 1, Issue 13 - March 26, 2021
Significant Political Developments Dominate the Week
On Wednesday, Governor Gavin Newsom announced that he will submit to the State Legislature the nomination of Alameda Assemblymember Rob Bonta as the next California Attorney General, filling the seat vacated by Xavier Becerra, who was recently sworn in as Secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The nomination is subject to confirmation by the California State Assembly and Senate within 90 days. For more on this appointment see here.
Also, it now appears that those pushing the recall of Governor Newsom will succeed in their effort to put the question to the voters. Proponents claim to have submitted 2.1 million signatures, which should give them enough of a cushion to reach the 1,495,709 necessary to qualify after invalid signatures, which currently account for around 20% of the total, are eliminated.
The recall countdown looks like this:
- March 17 — Deadline for submitting petitions.
- April 29 — Deadline for Registrars in all 58 Counties to verify signatures.
- May 9 — Deadline for Secretary of State to notify Counties of total signature count.
- May 10 - June 21 — Time period for voters to request withdrawal of their name from the recall petitions.
- July 6 — Deadline for the Counties to notify the Secretary of State of the final signature tally after voter withdrawal window.
- July 6 - August 17 — Time period for the Department of Finance to analyze the cost of the recall.
- August 17 - September 16 — Window for the Joint Legislative Budget Committee, chaired by Senator Nancy Skinner, to hold hearings and comment on the DOF’s cost analysis.
- September 17 — Likely date Secretary of State Dr. Shirley Weber certifies the recall election.
- September 17 — Likely date Lieutenant Governor Eleni Kounalakis sets the date for the recall election.
- November 16, 23 or 30 — Likely dates for the recall special election.
- 59 days before election — Filing deadline for candidates wishing to run to replace Governor Gavin Newsom should he be recalled.
A recent poll found that 53% of likely voters surveyed said they would support the Governor and vote against the recall.
CSAP Takes Positions on More Bills
The GA Committee has recommended, and the Board has approved a support position on, SB 106 by Senator Tom Umberg, which would amend the Mental Health Services Act by authorizing counties to expend funds for their innovative programs without approval by the Prop. 63 commission if the program is establishing or expanding a program implementing the full-service partnership model.
CSAP will also be watching very closely, and discussing with their authors and sponsors, the following bills:
- SB 14 (Portantino) - Would require the State Board of Education to update its illness verification regulations to account for a pupil’s absence for the benefit of the pupil’s mental or behavioral health. Also, would require the State Department of Education to identify an evidence-based training program for a local educational agency to use to train classified and certificated school employees having direct contact with pupils on youth behavioral health. Would also require the department to identify an evidence-based behavioral health training program with a curriculum tailored for pupils in grades 10 to 12, inclusive, for use by local educational agencies.
- SB 224 (Portantino) - Would require each school district, county office of education, state special school, and charter school to ensure that all pupils in grades 1 to 12, inclusive, receive medically accurate, age-appropriate mental health education from instructors trained in the appropriate courses at least once in elementary school, at least once in junior high school or middle school, as applicable, and at least once in high school.
- AB 723 (Low) - Would include within the scope of practice for marriage and family therapists the application of psychotherapeutic and family systems and theories, principles, and methods in the delivery of services to individuals, couples, or groups in order to assess evaluate, and treat relational issues, emotional disorders, behavioral problems, mental illness, alcohol and substance use, and to modify intrapersonal and interpersonal behaviors.
- AB 1443 (McCarty) - Would require a county to develop a training relating to taking, or causing to be taken, a person into custody pursuant to those provisions and would require a county to develop a written policy regarding designating members of a mobile crisis team and designating professional persons to take, or cause to be taken, a person into custody pursuant to those provisions. The bill would require the policy to contain specified components, including, among others, the process to receive that designation. The bill would also exempt an employee of a municipality who is a member of a mobile crisis team or a professional person, has been designated by the county, and is responsible for the detainment of the person from civil or criminal liability for any action by a person released at or before the end of the 72-hour detention.
- AB 1130 (Wood) - Would create an Office of Health Care Affordability to collect and analyze information and identify trends in health care prices. The Office would set enforceable costs targets for health care affordability while also aiming to improve quality and equity. The Office would provide data and tools to meet these goals, and ensure accountability if they don't, including the ability to levy financial consequences.
- AB 1132 (Wood) - Would extend the oversight of the California Attorney General and Department of Managed Health Care on health care mergers, acquisitions and other transactions, and also prohibit certain anti-competitive contracting clauses.
CSAP is pleased to announce that Senator Susan Eggman will make herself available to the GA Committee on Thursday, April 15, 6 - 6:30 pm. If you are not on the GA Committee but would like a chance to interact with the Senator, please email Paul Yoder. Senator Eggman is authoring several significant mental health bills and she is the Vice-Chair of the Senate Mental Health Caucus.
CMA Legislative Advocacy Conference
The CMA's 2021 Legislative Advocacy Conference will run April 5-9. Legislative meetings will be scheduled and coordinated by the county medical societies. If you would like to attend the legislator meetings, you can contact your county medical executive or utilize the registration link. Find more information about this year's conference here.
Progressive Organizations Outline Sweeping Agenda for California's Equitable Recovery from COVID-19 Pandemic
This week, the Building the California Dream Alliance, a broad coalition of more than 55 progressive organizations, unveiled a sweeping set of policy proposals aimed at ensuring an equitable recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic for Californians. The agenda aims to eliminate deep-seeded inequities laid bare over the past year in areas such as education, health care, housing, criminal justice, and the environment.
“Decades of systemic inequality and racism culminated this year in a devastating death toll, relentless suffering and trauma in communities of color,” said Victoria Dominquez, on behalf of Asian Americans Advancing Justice – California. “Californians who were already struggling to pay rent or buy food a year ago have now endured months without paychecks, and have grappled with fear of eviction, hunger, despair and incalculable loss. Enough is enough – it’s clear we must reshape our economic system and eradicate race and gender-based violence in policies and social structures. We demand better than a state that lets children fall into poverty and widens learning gaps while billionaires and corporations accumulate greater and greater wealth and power.”
Each year the coalition outlines an ambitious agenda to uplift families, empower workers and communities, and expand opportunities for all Californians to take part in the California Dream. This year’s coalition agenda is especially important as California looks to rebuild after a year that laid bare how unacceptable structural racism, reinforced by economic and environmental injustice, have resulted in COVID-19’s staggering death toll for people of color. View the full agenda here.
Vaccines
Yesterday, Governor Newsom issued the following statement:
“With vaccine supply increasing and by expanding eligibility to more Californians, the light at the end of the tunnel continues to get brighter,” said Governor Newsom. “We remain focused on equity as we extend vaccine eligibility to those older than 50 starting April 1, and those older than 16 starting April 15. This is possible thanks to the leadership of the Biden-Harris Administration and the countless public health officials across the state who have stepped up to get shots into arms.”
Based on the current estimates, California expects to be allocated approximately 2.5 million first and second doses per week in the first half of April, and more than 3 million doses in the second half of April. California currently receives about 1.8 million doses per week. These estimates may be adjusted as time goes on. The state has the capacity to administer more than 3 million vaccines per week, and is building the capacity to administer 4 million vaccines weekly by the end of April.
Worth a Read: "We Don't Need Police, Period." Who Should Handle Mental Health Calls in Sacramento?
Standing up and funding different types of local response teams isn't always easy as this investigation reveals here.
Also, the Orange County Sheriff’s Department announces a new bureau to focus on mental health.
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