Governor signs HF 538, Secures Fair Treatment for Families Dealing with Children's Mental Illness
Governor signs HF 538, Secures Fair Treatment for Families Dealing with Children's Mental Illness
Governor Tom Vilsack was joined by family and mental health advocates today as he signed House File 538, preventing parents from having to relinquish custody of their children in order for them to receive mental health treatment services from the state.
"We have a responsibility to protect families and children from unnecessary separation," said Vilsack. "This bill will allow families to stay together if their children need mental health services and ensure Iowa's young people have health care security. Addressing this important issue will have a major impact on families throughout our state, and I thank legislators for making this a priority."
Today, parents must give up custody of their children to the state before they become eligible for services under Medicaid and before psychiatric medical institutions will accept them for services. This proposal will allow those same children to receive services but without parents having to give up custody. HF 538 requires the Iowa Department of Human Services to submit a waiver to serve not more than 300 children who need behavioral health care services and who qualify for the care level of a psychiatric medical institution.
This bill has been a priority of the Administration because it is an important piece of a comprehensive and effective children's mental health system. The MH/MR/DD/BI Commission has been working to find better ways to deliver children's mental health services. The enactment of this legislation is crucial step in creating a children's mental health system that provides the services kids need in a way that is fair to families.
The Governor also signed the following bills today:
* House File 374, an Act relating to veterans by providing for the establishment of a department of veterans affairs, modifying the definition of veteran for property taxation and certain other purposes, providing for the compensation of members of a county commission of veteran affairs, providing for the issuance of combined hunting and fishing licenses to certain veterans, establishing a hepatitis C awareness program for veterans, concerning funds in an account for a state veterans cemetery, concerning military pay differential, and providing an effective date and retroactive and other applicability dates.
* House File 438, an Act relating to assessments associated with soil and water conservation districts, by providing for the deposit of moneys in a fund established by a district's commissioners.
* House File 620, an Act relating to the volunteer health care provider program and providing an effective date.
* House File 716, an Act relating to the military division and the homeland security and emergency management division of the department of public defense concerning the activation and use of the civil air patrol, the authority of the adjutant general to enter into interstate agreements for use of national guard personnel, and the use of the national incident management system for state emergencies.
* Senate File 78, an Act relating to the exemption from city taxes of land included in an application for voluntary annexation or in a city's involuntary annexation petition and including effective and applicability date provisions.
* Senate File 350, an Act relating to child support recovery including access to information for the purposes of recovery, provisions relating to failure to withhold income or to pay the amounts withheld, and to the suspension of a child support obligation, the satisfaction of support payments, nullifying related administrative rules and providing penalties.
* Senate File 395, an Act relating to the activities of the grape and wine development commission, and providing for the transfer of wine gallonage tax revenues to the grape and wine development fund.
* Senate File 404, an Act providing for county eligibility for state payment of property tax relief moneys and allowed growth funding for mental health, mental retardation, and developmental disabilities services and providing effective and retroactive applicability dates.
http://www.governor.state.ia.us/news/2005/may/may0505_2.html