|
Starting this
summer, Minnesotans will be reminded that they could make the difference in
stopping maltreatment of vulnerable adults. Human Services Commissioner Emily
Piper recently introduced a public awareness campaign promoting the Minnesota
Adult Abuse Reporting Center, the state’s single toll-free hotline to report
suspected maltreatment of vulnerable adults, including older adults and
individuals with disabilities. The new center consolidates 169 county phone
numbers into one toll-free number, 1-844-880-1574, that any Minnesotan can call
24 hours a day, seven days a week to report abuse. More information is in a news
release about the adult abuse hotline.
Six clinics are
working to be Minnesota’s first Certified Community Behavioral Health Clinics,
a new model that improves and integrates care for people with mental illness
and substance use disorder, through grants announced by DHS June 27. By offering a
high level of coordination between primary care providers, chemical health
providers, social services agencies, counties, tribes, veterans' programs and
other key partners, the clinics are expected to serve as a “one-stop-shop” and
help people before they face a crisis. As a result, families will be more
likely to avoid the emergency room and less likely to involve law enforcement.
More information is in a news
release about the clinics.
Gov. Mark Dayton recently announced his
appointments to the Governor’s Task Force on Mental Health. Appointees include
Minnesotans who have experienced mental illness — either themselves, or as a
family member — state and local government officials, mental health and other
health care providers, as well as judicial and law enforcement officials.
Together, they will work to identify gaps in our state’s mental health system
and propose comprehensive recommendations to design, implement, and sustain a
continuum of mental health services throughout Minnesota. DHS Commissioner
Emily Piper will chair the task force. More information is in a news
release about the task force.
DHS recently awarded
$1.5 million per year in grants to eight tribes, counties and community
agencies to reduce disparities in the state’s child welfare system. The
Minnesota Legislature appropriated the funds to develop, implement and evaluate
activities to address disparities and disproportionality in the child welfare
system. More information is in a news
release about the disparities grants.
A recent federal
study found better health outcomes for Minnesota seniors served by a
popular, longstanding program combining Medicaid and Medicare benefits, a
finding that holds promise as other states seek to improve health care for
low-income seniors. Older adults served by the Minnesota Senior Health Options
(MSHO) program were significantly more likely to receive primary health care
and much less likely to end up in the hospital, when compared to their
counterparts in a Medicaid-only program. The study also found that MSHO
enrollees who were hospitalized had fewer and shorter hospital stays, and were
more likely to receive home- and community-based long-term care services. More
information is in a news
release about the health care study.
A mental health
advocate with two decades of experience in public policy and related issues
will lead the Community Supports Administration at DHS. Commissioner Emily
Piper has appointed Claire E. Wilson to the position of assistant commissioner;
her first day at DHS was June 13. Most recently, Wilson served as executive
director of the Minnesota Association of Community Mental Health Programs. In
that role, she provided strategic and administrative leadership, creating
coalitions of stakeholders to advance improvements in mental health. More
information is in a news
release about Wilson’s appointment.
The Minnesota
Association of County Social Service Administrators (MACSSA) honored DHS Deputy
Commissioner Chuck Johnson June 2 with the Partnership Award. MACSSA President
Phil Claussen said Johnson was selected for the award for his many years in
state government working on policies and programs that support low-income
families and children, whose well-being is central to the missions of both DHS
and county human services. Throughout his more than 30-year career in state
government, and more than 25 years at DHS, Johnson has recognized and
appreciated the role of counties in Minnesota’s state-supervised,
county-administered human services system, said Claussen, human services
director in Blue Earth County. More information is in a news
story about Johnson’s award.
DHS is seeking
input from people with disabilities about a new federal rule for home and
community-based services. Meetings have been scheduled for comments from people
receiving services through Brain Injury, Community Alternative Care, Community
Access for Disability Inclusion and Developmental Disability waivers. The
meetings also provide a chance for people with disabilities receiving waiver
services to offer feedback on standards for the new Home and Community-Based
Services Rule and learn what the HCBS Rule will mean for them and others. More
information is in a news
release about the meetings.
Fact sheets about DHS programs were updated during June:
Questions and comments about navigation and technical issues should be emailed to the DHS webmaster. Send news story ideas for the public website to DHS Communications.
For accessible formats of this publication or assistance
with additional equal access to human services, write to DHS.Communications@state.mn.us,
call 651-431-2911, or use your preferred relay service.
|
