Senate Bill 230 addresses first recommendation of Behavioral Health Consortium’s Action Plan

WILMINGTON, Del. – Governor John Carney on Wednesday signed Senate Bill 230 beside members of the General Assembly, Lieutenant Governor Bethany Hall-Long and the Behavioral Health Consortium, and other mental health and addiction advocates.

“I am proud to sign this bill into law, a concrete step to assist Delawareans dealing every day with mental illness and drug and alcohol dependency,” said Governor John Carney. “This legislation recognizes that mental health and drug or alcohol dependency benefits should be treated the same as medical benefits. Thank you to Lieutenant Governor Bethany Hall-Long for her leadership on this issue with the Behavioral Health Consortium, and to all of the advocates who helped with this legislation.”

Senate Bill 230, also known as Mental Health Parity, is a critical step to eliminating coverage discrimination in Delaware and mandating certain reporting requirements that will allow the state to determine if health insurance carriers and Medicaid managed care organizations are applying treatment limitations which may prevent someone from accessing care for their addiction or mental illness. The legislation will help ensure compliance with the Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act, passed by United States Congress in 2008, in order to ensure fair access to behavioral health treatment and making sure that those who need help can receive it.

“For far too long, people struggling with addiction and mental illness have not been treated fairly when it comes to getting the quality health care they need and deserve,” said Lt. Governor Hall-Long. “That ends now. This legislation is an important step to knocking down the barriers to treatment and eliminating stigma. I am thrilled we are enacting the first recommendation of the Behavioral Health Consortium’s Three Year Action Plan today.”

Lt. Governor Hall-Long, and members of the consortium, worked closely with former U.S. Representative Patrick Kennedy on this legislation.

“I applaud Governor Carney for signing Senate Bill 230, which represents a major step forward in ending coverage discrimination against those with mental health and addiction challenges in Delaware,” said Patrick Kennedy, Founder of the Kennedy Forum. “Make no mistake: This new law will save lives. By forcing health plans to submit proof of their compliance with parity laws, Senate Bill 230 shifts the burden back to insurance companies and away from families in crisis. I would particularly like to thank Lieutenant Governor Hall-Long, whom I worked closely with on this bill, for her outstanding leadership, as well as Representative Bentz, Senator Townsend, and Senator Henry for helping to expand access to treatment.”

Senate Bill 230 requires health insurance issuers to complete an initial analysis, and submit a report to the Department of Insurance and the Delaware Health Information Network.

“Mental health and substance abuse disorders are among the greatest public health challenges that our country and our state face,” said Senator Bryan Townsend, prime sponsor of Senate Bill 230. “It’s important for our entire health care system, from public policy to commercial insurance, to respond to that challenge by demonstrating that we value mental health just as much as physical health and that parity is a standard we take seriously in Delaware. I’m thankful to the Lt. Governor for her advocacy on this issue and to Gov. Carney for signing this bill into law.”

“The Behavioral Health Consortium gives us the opportunity to take a deep dive into Delaware’s challenges as they relate to behavioral and mental health. I thank Lt. Gov Hall-Long for her leadership on these issues,” said Representative David Bentz. “Senate Bill 230 was a collaborative effort that increases reporting of insurance coverage for mental and behavioral health in an effort to help us get a clear picture of the care in our state. Addiction is a disease – like cancer or heart disease – and we should be doing what we can to combat it and help those who struggle.”

Stakeholders, such as the Ability Network of Delaware and NAMI Delaware, were also heavily involved in the passage of this legislation.

“Ultimately, real parity breaks down the final barrier to stigma,” said Carolyn Petrak, Associate Executive Director of the Ability Network of Delaware.  “When insurers cover mental health and substance use disorders in an unbiased measure and those seeking treatment need not weigh the cost maybe then, the barriers that stigma creates start to crumble.”

“Already there is significant stigma about mental health conditions. Only about half of the 1 in 5 Americans affected by mental illness seek treatment each year,” said Anne Slease, Director of Advocacy & Education for the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) in Delaware. “Overcoming the stigma is a big obstacle. Paying the bill shouldn’t have to be.”

Click HERE for photos from the bill signing.

 

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NEW CASTLE (Aug. 27, 2018) – Culminating nearly a year of outreach to and feedback from health stakeholders across the state, Department of Health and Social Services (DHSS) Secretary Dr. Kara Odom Walker today sent her recommendations for establishing health care spending and quality benchmarks to Governor John Carney. The work on the benchmarks began last summer when the General Assembly passed House Joint Resolution 7 authorizing DHSS to develop a health care spending benchmark. The Governor signed that legislation in September 2017, just months after an analysis by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) showed Delaware had the third-highest per-capita health care spending rate in the country. That fall, DHSS and Secretary Walker began a series of summits to explore how a spending benchmark could work in Delaware. While the overall health of Delawareans has been improving – Delaware is ranked 30th among the states, according to America’s Health Rankings – the pace of that improvement is trailing the growth of health care spending across the state.

As a way to increase transparency and to tie health care spending to improved outcomes for Delawareans, Governor Carney signed Executive Order 19 in February 2018, creating an advisory group of health care leaders and other key stakeholders to provide feedback to Secretary Walker on strategies for developing spending and quality benchmarks. The advisory group provided its summary report in June 2018.

Based on months of feedback, research and deliberations, Secretary Walker’s recommendations to Governor Carney include:

* The health care spending benchmark should be expressed as a rate using a calculated measure of the per-capita potential gross state product (PGSP) growth, that the Governor should set the initial benchmark for 2019 and that the initial benchmark should remain in place for five years.

* The Delaware Finance Advisory Committee (DEFAC) should establish a new Health Care Spending Benchmark Subcommittee to review the inflation component of the benchmark and the methodology of calculating the benchmark for 2024 and beyond.

* The Health Care Commission should be responsible for setting the health care spending benchmark in the future and consider changes to the benchmark target between 2020 and 2023 if the DEFAC Health Care Spending Benchmark Subcommittee so recommends.

* The Health Care Commission should collect timely and accurate data from licensed health insurers – using the Health Care Claims Database – to inform setting the spending and quality benchmarks, and assessing performance.

* The quality benchmarks should be established to “monitor and establish accountability for improved health care quality that bends the health care cost growth curve.”

* The quality benchmarks should be focused on high-priority areas, including ambulatory care-sensitive emergency department visits; opioid-related overdose deaths and co-prescribed opioid and benzodiazepine prescriptions; and cardiovascular disease prevention.

* That there should be aspirational benchmarks along with more incremental annual benchmarks, and that the Health Care Commission (HCC) should convene a time-limited advisory group to inform the HCC on whether the quality measures should change to reflect new priorities or improved performance.

“I want to thank the hundreds of health care leaders, advocates and consumers across our state who provided feedback on the spending and quality benchmarks,” said Secretary Walker, a board-certified family physician. “They understand the need for our health care system to change in order to be sustainable and to meet the ongoing needs of the patients we serve.”

Secretary Walker encouraged stakeholders to provide feedback to DHSS through ourhealthde@delaware.gov. Ongoing updates also will be posted on DHSS’ health care website, www.ChooseHealthDE.com.

Delaware historically has ranked among the top 10 states in per-capita health care spending, including in 2014, when the state had the third-highest per-capita rate, behind only Alaska and Massachusetts. The 50-state analysis by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), released in 2017, found that Delaware’s per-capita rate was $10,254, or more than 27 percent higher than the U.S. average of $8,045. Without changes, the analysis estimated that Delaware’s total health care spending would more than double from $9.5 billion in 2014 to $21.5 billion in 2025. Yet Delaware ranked only 30th among the states for overall health in 2017, according to America’s Health Rankings.

WILMINGTON, Del. – On Tuesday, August 28 and Wednesday, August 29, Governor Carney will sign 29 pieces of legislation from the 149^th General Assembly into law surrounded by members of the General Assembly and advocates from across the state. A recap of this year’s Legislative Session can be found at de.gov/recap. Bill signing times have been updated for Tuesday, August 28 at the Delaware Public Archives. A full schedule can be found below.

Media planning to attend the signings please RSVP to Emily David (emily.david@delaware.gov) for additional information.

 

TUESDAY: Bill Signing Ceremonies

Bill Signing Ceremony for House Bill 425 and House Bill 441

WHAT:        Governor Carney will sign House Bill 425 and House Bill 441, pieces of legislation related to prescription drugs.

WHO:           Governor Carney

Representative Andria Bennett

Representative William Carson

Erik Mabus, Owner, Bayard Pharmacy

WHEN:        Tuesday, August 28, 2018

9:30 a.m.

WHERE:      Bayard Pharmacy

202 W. Loockerman Street

Dover, DE 19904

 

 

*UPDATED* Bill Signings at Delaware Public Archives

WHAT:          Governor Carney will sign the following legislation. Please note all times are approximate and subject to change. Prime sponsors are listed in parentheses:

11:00 a.m. –  House Bill 437 (Representative David Wilson)

11:15 a.m. –  House Bill 298 (Representative Charles Postles)

11:45 a.m. –  Senate Bill 266 (Senator Anthony Delcollo)

12:00 p.m. –  House Bill 374 (Speaker Pete Schwartzkopf)

12:15 p.m. –  House Bill 380 (Speaker Pete Schwartzkopf)

12:30 p.m. –  House Bill 476 (Representative Trey Paradee)

12:45 p.m. –  House Bill 426 (Representative Trey Paradee)

WHO:            Governor Carney

Members of the General Assembly

Advocates

WHEN:          Tuesday, August 28, 2018

11:00 a.m.

WHERE:       Delaware Public Archives

121 Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd North

Dover, Delaware 19901

 

 

WEDNESDAY: Bill Signing Ceremonies

Bill Signings at the Carvel Building Auditorium

WHAT:          Governor Carney will sign the following legislation. Please note all times are approximate and subject to change. Prime sponsors are listed in parentheses.

9:30 a.m. – House Bill 332 (Representative Stephanie T. Bolden)

9:45 a.m. – Senate Bill 172 (Senator David Sokola)

10:00 a.m. – Senate Bill 169 (Senator Nicole Poore)

10:15 a.m. – Senate Bill 212 (Senator Nicole Poore)

10:30 a.m. – House Bill 368 (Representative John Viola)

11:00 a.m. – Senate Bill 227 (Senator Bryan Townsend)

11:15 a.m. – Senate Bill 157 (Senator Bryan Townsend)

11:30 a.m. – Senate Bill 197 (Senator Gregory Lavelle)

1:30 p.m. – House Bill 292 (Representative Earl Jaques)

1:45 p.m. – House Bill 456 (Representative Earl Jaques)

2:00 p.m. – Senate Bill 11 & Senate Bill 7 (Senator Harris McDowell)

2:15 p.m. – House Bill 360 (Representative Helene Keeley)

2:30 p.m. – House Bill 386 (Representative Paul Baumbach)

2:45 p.m. – House Bill 401 (Representative Debra Heffernan)

3:00 p.m. – Senate Bill 113 (Senator Harris McDowell)

3:30 p.m. – House Bill 412 (Representative Bryon Short)

3:45 p.m. – House Bill 438 (Representative Charles Potter Jr.)

4:00 p.m. – Senate Bill 230 (Senator Bryan Townsend)

WHO:            Governor Carney

Members of the General Assembly

Advocates

WHEN:          Wednesday, August 29, 2018

9:30 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.

Break between 12:00 and 1:30 p.m.

WHERE:       Carvel Building Auditorium, 2^nd Floor

820 North French Street

Wilmington, Delaware 19801

 

Senator John McCain proudly served his country as a Navy aviator during the Vietnam War and as a statesman representing the State of Arizona in the U.S. House and Senate for over thirty years.

In remembrance of the life and service of Senator McCain, Governor Carney has ordered the U.S. and Delaware flags to half staff effective immediately. Flags are to be returned to full staff at sunset Sunday, September 2, the day of Senator McCain’s interment.

Free, family-oriented career fair to expose middle school students, adults to careers in construction industry

WILMINGTON, Del. — Governor John Carney on Thursday announced a family-friendly career fair for youth and adults to explore careers in construction. The Governor’s Construction Career Expo is a two-day event in September that will expose middle school students, and adults looking for a career change, to training programs and construction career paths.

“We’re working hard to make sure that all Delawareans have the opportunity to succeed and share in our state’s economic progress,” said Governor Carney. “Careers in the building trades have historically provided paths into the middle class for thousands of Delaware workers and their families. Those same opportunities exist today. This Construction Career Expo will help connect Delawareans with meaningful career opportunities in construction fields, and expose Delaware students and adults to good-paying, skilled construction careers that are in demand and can help strengthen Delaware’s workforce.”

The construction industry is one of Delaware’s fastest-growing employment sectors with more than 3,500 job openings expected through 2024. The Governor’s Construction Career Expo will introduce training and career paths to students and those looking to move from jobs to meaningful careers. The Governor’s initiative is also an opportunity to connect employers and career-seekers, and to continue to train and develop a strong, skilled Delaware workforce.

“Throughout our state’s history, construction trades have been responsible for catapulting thousands of Delaware families into the middle class by providing skills training, benefits, and great wages,” said Cerron Cade, Secretary of the Delaware Department of Labor. “Today, it is more important than ever that the next generation of Delawareans are equipped with the best education and career training available, so they can continue to compete in a highly competitive and rapidly shrinking world.”

On Friday, September 21, from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Chase Center in Wilmington, middle school students from various schools in New Castle County will have the opportunity to participate in one of three scheduled blocks to meet with employers, sample fun activities and tools, and participate in heavy equipment demonstrations and virtual simulators. This specialized field trip was coordinated with school principals and school districts.

All students, families, and members of the public, are invited to attend the Construction Career Expo on Saturday, September 22 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., at the Chase Center in Wilmington. The free family-oriented career fair will include activities for both youth and adults, skills training opportunities, on-site job interviews, heavy equipment demonstrations, food trucks, and giveaways.

The Governor’s Construction Career Expo is presented in partnership with:

• Office of the Governor
• AFSCME
• Delaware State AFL-CIO
• Delaware Building and Construction Trades Council
• Delaware Chief School Officers Association
• Delaware Contractors Association
• Delaware Department of Education
• Delaware Department of Labor
• Delaware Department of Transportation
• Associated Builders and Contractors
• Delaware Technical Community College
• The Committee of 100
• City of Wilmington

“Many local employers are having trouble finding enough people to fill vacant job openings. We will train and pay a great wage, but we just need to find people looking for a stable and good-paying job,” said Alisha Wayman Bryson, Vice President of Wayman Fire Protection. “The Governor’s Construction Career Expo is going to be an amazing event for all ages. On Friday, kids are going to see firsthand the magic of construction, and on Saturday, we will show the entire family the benefits of a career in the construction industry. We look forward to having trades, local employers with job openings, training centers, and schools all under one roof.”

“Governor Carney’s Construction Career Expo is an opportunity for our Unions to showcase the contributions made every day by the working men and women of our state, and how big of a role they play in Delaware’s economy,” said James Maravelias, President of the Delaware State AFL-CIO. “This Expo will also introduce young Delawareans to careers in construction, one of our state’s fastest growing industries. We are pleased to be partnering with the Governor on this event, and look forward to working together to promote good-paying careers in the Building Trades Unions.”

“The Wall Street Journal and Businessweek are only two of many publications that have recently written about the shortages of trained employees and opportunities in the construction trades,” said Dr. Victoria Gehrt, Superintendent of the New Castle County Vocational Technical School District. “Governor Carney recognizes the importance of the need to train for the construction industries and is promoting the first, hopefully annual, Governor’s Construction Career Expo in Delaware. We appreciate our Governor for his support in informing and encouraging our youth to consider the construction trades as a positive and rewarding career option.”

“The Colonial School District is proud to participate in the first ever Governor’s Construction Trades Career Expo for Delaware students and families,” said Dr. D. Dusty Blakey, Superintendent of Colonial School District. “We appreciate the Governor for his leadership and vision in the area of Career and Technical Education and more specifically, for providing Delaware families with access and opportunity to learn and explore careers in the construction trades. We firmly believe that this innovative approach to engaging stakeholders across the state to support education will have a positive impact on the future of Delaware’s workforce.”

Learn more and sign up to receive updates about the Governor’s Construction Career Expo.

Use the hashtag #DEBuilds to spread the word and follow discussion about the Governor’s Construction Career Expo on social media.

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