An important tool when speaking with legislators and staff on a coordinated lobby day is talking points which ensure that all participants are covering the same topics in similar fashion. This allows the full legislature to have heard similar issues from constituents throughout the day. The Legislative Affairs Committee developed a theme for the 2005 lobby day of long-term, stable system funding. Below are suggested discussion areas for tying a long-term cost-of-living allowance (COLA) in mental health/mental retardation/drug and alcohol (MH/MR/D&A) to an inflationary index. Utilizing a national inflationary index for MH/MR/D&A better addresses the realized and actual costs of doing business.
Impacts
to Your Organization
Obviously, with increased operational expenses and service costs (and absent
any real infusion of money into budgets), neither a business nor an organization
can survive and perform to full capacity. Community services providers are
no different: we face increased costs, the desire for the provision of best-practice
and evidence-based services, and the need to recruit and retain qualified
staff. Legislators and staff need to hear from providers about the impact
that inadequate funding and years of no COLAs have had on individual organizations.
Also feel free to discuss inadequate and improper funding in past years...and whether or not the 2% COLA in the 2004/05 state budget was realized by the organization. Regardless of whether or not the COLA reached your organization, be sure to thank the legislators for their efforts to include this funding for MH/MR/D&A in last year’s budget.
Points to Highlight During Legislative Visits
- Last year was the third straight year that the administration did not include a COLA in its proposed state budget.
- The legislature included a 2% COLA in last year’s budget – which did not reach many providers (discuss your own organization’s situation).
- The administration
has proposed a 2% COLA in this year’s budget – however, upon
further inspection, it is not on all service line-items…which results
in a net increase of much less
than 2%. - Discuss business items (refer to district lobby day talking points) – as costs rise in health care and utilities, for example, your organization needs to meet those expectations as well as increased services.
- Discuss the direct impact of flat-funding on your organization’s continued ability to provide clinical services to individuals being served in the MH/MR/D&A system. Provide data on uncompensated care, staff lay-offs, and clients and their families affected by downsizing, etc.
- Tying a COLA for MH/MR/D&A to a national index such as the Home Health Market Basket Index (HHMBI) will better enable providers to meet business costs and strengthen the system.
- Highlight an innovative and/or successful program within your organization that, absent adequate funding, may not be able to continue in the future.
