RCW 43.20A.895 Adult behavioral health system—Improvement strategy. (Effective until January 1, 2020.)

(1) The systems responsible for financing, administration, and delivery of publicly funded mental health and chemical dependency services to adults must be designed and administered to achieve improved outcomes for adult clients served by those systems through increased use and development of evidence-based, research-based, and promising practices, as defined in RCW 71.24.025. For purposes of this section, client outcomes include: Improved health status; increased participation in employment and education; reduced involvement with the criminal justice system; enhanced safety and access to treatment for forensic patients; reduction in avoidable utilization of and costs associated with hospital, emergency room, and crisis services; increased housing stability; improved quality of life, including measures of recovery and resilience; and decreased population level disparities in access to treatment and treatment outcomes.

(2) The department and the health care authority must implement a strategy for the improvement of the adult behavioral health system.

(a) The department must establish a steering committee that includes at least the following members: Behavioral health service recipients and their families; local government; representatives of behavioral health organizations; representatives of county coordinators; law enforcement; city and county jails; tribal representatives; behavioral health service providers, including at least one chemical dependency provider and at least one psychiatric advanced registered nurse practitioner; housing providers; medicaid managed care plan representatives; long-term care service providers; organizations representing health care professionals providing services in mental health settings; the Washington state hospital association; the Washington state medical association; individuals with expertise in evidence-based and research-based behavioral health service practices; and the health care authority.

(b) The adult behavioral health system improvement strategy must include:

(i) An assessment of the capacity of the current publicly funded behavioral health services system to provide evidence-based, research-based, and promising practices;

(ii) Identification, development, and increased use of evidence-based, research-based, and promising practices;

(iii) Design and implementation of a transparent quality management system, including analysis of current system capacity to implement outcomes reporting and development of baseline and improvement targets for each outcome measure provided in this section;

(iv) Identification and phased implementation of service delivery, financing, or other strategies that will promote improvement of the behavioral health system as described in this section and incentivize the medical care, behavioral health, and long-term care service delivery systems to achieve the improvements described in this section and collaborate across systems. The strategies must include phased implementation of public reporting of outcome and performance measures in a form that allows for comparison of performance and levels of improvement between geographic regions of Washington; and

(v) Identification of effective methods for promoting workforce capacity, efficiency, stability, diversity, and safety.

(c) The department must seek private foundation and federal grant funding to support the adult behavioral health system improvement strategy.

(d) By May 15, 2014, the Washington state institute for public policy, in consultation with the department, the University of Washington evidence-based practice institute, the University of Washington alcohol and drug abuse institute, and the Washington institute for mental health research and training, shall prepare an inventory of evidence-based, research-based, and promising practices for prevention and intervention services pursuant to subsection (1) of this section. The department shall use the inventory in preparing the behavioral health improvement strategy. The department shall provide the institute with data necessary to complete the inventory.

(e) By August 1, 2014, the department must report to the governor and the relevant fiscal and policy committees of the legislature on the status of implementation of the behavioral health improvement strategy, including strategies developed or implemented to date, timelines, and costs to accomplish phased implementation of the adult behavioral health system improvement strategy.

(3) The department must contract for the services of an independent consultant to review the provision of forensic mental health services in Washington state and provide recommendations as to whether and how the state's forensic mental health system should be modified to provide an appropriate treatment environment for individuals with mental disorders who have been charged with a crime while enhancing the safety and security of the public and other patients and staff at forensic treatment facilities. By August 1, 2014, the department must submit a report regarding the recommendations of the independent consultant to the governor and the relevant fiscal and policy committees of the legislature.

[ 2014 c 225 § 64; 2013 c 338 § 2.]

NOTES:

Effective date—2014 c 225: See note following RCW 71.24.016.

Effective date—2014 c 225 § 1: "Section 1 of this act is necessary for the immediate preservation of the public peace, health, or safety, or support of the state government and its existing public institutions, and takes effect immediately [April 4, 2014]." [ 2014 c 225 § 111.]