In December, lawmakers passed a $30 billion spending plan with substantial investments in mental healthcare.Source: Mohammed Hassan / Pixabay
But, I was also able to discuss how, in December, North Carolina’s expanded access to Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act was tied to a $30 billion spending plan with substantial investments in mental health services. According to North Carolina Senator Jim Burgin, “ne of the attractions to Medicaid expansion for all of us was this once in a generation or maybe even once in a lifetime opportunity to say, ‘Mental health is a big deal.
Another effect of the scarcity of beds is that when one is available, the patient may not be grouped with other patients with similar conditions. That also happened to me when I was hospitalized for. One of my roommates came in detoxing and was so erratic and disruptive that it made it harder to sleep than it already was.
The state spending plan also includes $5 million to advance a collaborative care model in which common mental illnesses are treated in primary care settings. “Behavioral health has been thought of as a specialty-level service,” said Secretary of NC DHHS Kody Kinsley. “It’s not. It’s primary care. Everybody needs access to it.”As mentioned, I’ve been handcuffed in the back of a police vehicle due to a mental health crisis. I wasn’t violent, threatening to hurt myself, or noncompliant.