This Week

Last update of the year

This year has been packed with activity and everyone here at Mental Health Australia (including me) is looking forward to a well-deserved break over the festive season.

Our office will shut down from 25 December until 4 January and this will be my last update until February 2016.

For a wrap up of the work of Mental Health Australia over 2015 I’ve recorded a short video message for Christmas.  You can watch it below.

This will be my last update till I return to work following Australia Day.  I’d like to take this opportunity to thank you for your support of Mental Health Australia over the past year.  I hope that whatever your religion, whatever your family circumstances and whatever kind of year you have had, that the Christmas break is a chance to re-charge and recover.  We will return on the New Year excited about implementing reform rather than contemplating it, and that will be a great new challenge to embrace!

So on behalf of the Board and staff of Mental Health Australia, we wish you all a safe and happy festive season!

 

(Click this image to view the animated Christmas card)

MYEFO

Like many of you, I was quite alarmed when I read the MYEFO documentation that stated:

“The Government will consolidate existing mental health programmes to create flexibility and better target services. Funding for mental health programmes will now be better focused on individual and local needs with a move to regional planning, integration and commissioning of mental health services.

The Government will also work with States and Territories to negotiate a Fifth National Mental Health Plan in 2016.

As a result of streamlining programmes, the Government will achieve savings of $141.0 million over four years from 1 July 2015. Savings for this measure have already been provided for by the Government and will contribute towards the related expense measure The Australian Government’s Response to the National Ice Taskforce Final Report. “

Upon investigation the situation is, in fact, much more complicated!

The Department of Health were kind enough to respond to our requests for further information very quickly, and provided the summary that I have reproduced in full below.  The salient points being;

“Mental health funding will continue to grow over the forward estimates”, and
“The Department of Health will work closely with funded organisations to ensure timely advice is provided on future funding and transition arrangements.”

The statement from the Department is provided below.  We will continue to monitor the movement of money as the reform agenda proceeds.

MENTAL HEALTH SAVE - STATEMENT

The 2015 Mid-Year Economic and Fiscal Outlook (MYEFO) Budget update includes a saving to mental health programmes of $141 million over four years.  The ‘Mental Health – streamlining’ measure consolidates existing mental health programme funding, which will enable better targeting of service delivery.

The saving will not reduce service delivery to mental health consumers.  People currently receiving Commonwealth-funded mental health services will continue to receive services matched to their needs. 

The savings largely result from contained growth from the Partners in Recovery (PIR) Programme and the discontinuation of the National Perinatal Depression Initiative (NPDI) funding for states and territories, along with some small programme efficiencies.   The Government has reaffirmed its decision not to expand the PIR programme to new regions in the lead up to the planned transition to the National Disability Insurance Scheme, commencing in 2016/17.  States and territories were advised that the time limited NPDI agreement ceased in June 2015.  Some savings have also been achieved from the paused roll out of Early Psychosis Youth Services (EPYS) sites.    These savings are being rolled into PHNs to support the flexible funding pool consistent with the Government’s response to the mental health review.    

A $2.7 billion investment over the next four years in mental health programme funding remains.   Mental health funding will continue to grow over the forward estimates.  This aligns with and will support action under the Government Response to the Review of Mental Health Programmes and Services.  It includes over $350 million each year for a Primary Health Network (PHN) flexible funding pool to commission and integrate mental health services to best meet local and individual consumer needs.  

The savings achieved by containing growth in Partners In Recovery and the discontinuation of the National Perinatal Depression Initiative funding to the states and territories have contributed to the Government’s efforts to combatting ice.  An additional $241.5 million over four years will be provided to PHNs to commission new alcohol and drug treatment services, and as a result PHNs will support better integration of mental health and drug and alcohol treatment services at the local level and across the continuum of care.  This will particularly benefit young people for whom substance misuse and mental health problems are likely to be very closely related, and for which better coordination of services at the local level is needed. A portion of the funding, $78 million over three years, will be provided for Indigenous-specific treatment services, which will also be commissioned through PHNs.   The Department will work closely with PHNs, state and territory governments, and the Aboriginal Community Controlled Services sector in early 2016 on the requirements for funding, governance arrangements  and transition activities associated with the new alcohol and drug treatment services.

On top of this, an additional $84.75 million is being provided to support Indigenous mental health services, including access to culturally sensitive and joined up services at a local level.

The Department of Health will work closely with funded organisations to ensure timely advice is provided on future funding and transition arrangements.

Milestone case of Ella Ingram vs QBE

Today the Human Rights Division of the Victoria Civil and Administrative Tribunal delivered its findings regarding the case of Ella Ingram vs QBE Insurance. The Tribunal found in favour of Ms Ingram, awarding her financial compensation.

Ms Ingram took out travel insurance with QBE in 2011 ahead of school trip to the USA. However, in the months leading up to the scheduled trip she experienced depression for the first time in her life. Following treatment and advice from family and medical practitioners, she was not able to travel as planned and sought to claim the cost of her trip against her travel insurance. QBE rejected this claim on the basis of a blanket exclusion for mental health in the policy she purchased.

The Tribunal’s finding represents a huge milestone in challenging discrimination on the basis of mental illness. Indeed, the Tribunal found that QBE “engaged in unlawful discrimination when it included a mental illness exclusion in the policy issued to Ms Ingram and when it denied her indemnity relying on that exclusion”.

While this case will have big implications for the insurance sector generally, it also highlights the stigma and discrimination that people with mental illness experience in many aspects of life.

The decision sends a clear message to the insurance industry that it is not okay to discriminate against people on the basis of mental illness. We have been working hard in this area for years, and this case reflects the significant work by Mental Health Australia, beyondblue and other organisations to bring attention to how insurers deal with mental illness.

The case itself has been a true David and Goliath struggle, and we are both proud and honoured to be associated with Ms Ingram. Her courage and determination in standing up for her legal rights against a large company is an inspiration to many. We hope others who have experienced discrimination based on their mental illness will take heart from this decision and consider taking action themselves.

Commissioning and Contracting for Better Mental Health

Earlier this week, Mental Health Australia made a submission to the Department of Social Services on their discussion paper on a new disability employment framework. Our submission raised three areas of concern.  

The government’s proposal to increase the level of market-based competition in disability employment could have unintended consequences for non‑government organisations that operate collaboratively and in partnership with each other.  

We pointed out that contracting arrangements can either help or hinder the delivery of services to support better mental health outcomes, and suggested DSS consider our report, released earlier in the year Commissioning and Contracting for Better Mental Health Outcomes, which advocates for a more collaborative, and less competitive, approach to contracting with the non-government sector.

We also noted that the introduction of the National Disability Insurance Scheme has demonstrated the importance of providing support to providers during a transition to a new system, in order to ensure the long-term sustainability of service access and consumer choice. 

Finally, we welcomed the discussion paper’s recognition that for a market to work effectively, participants need both knowledge and support, and recommended that support decision making be incorporated into the new disability employment framework.

DSS’s discussion paper can be found here.

Independent Hospital Pricing Authority

The Independent Hospital Pricing Authority (IHPA) has released a supplement providing information about the statistical modelling approaches and performance analysis associated with the development of the Draft Australian Mental Health Care Classification (AMHCC).

The supplement should be read in conjunction with the AMHCC public consultation paper 2.

Mental Health in Multicultural Australia Project – consultation on future Project directions

As flagged in last week’s update, we will be releasing a public consultation document to seek the views on the future direction/s for the Mental Health in Multicultural Australia (MHiMA) Project. We are still finalising this document and plan on releasing it very soon. The consultation will run until 3 February 2016.

The consultation document will provide information on the MHiMA Project, including recent Project activities and questions to assist with your feedback. It will be available on the Mental Health Australia website and the MHiMA Project website. We will also distribute it widely and promote it via Mental Health Australia social media and the MHiMA Project Facebook and Twitter accounts.

In anticipation of the consultation document’s release, I encourage you to start thinking about possible future direction/s for the MHiMA Project. We especially encourage people of culturally and linguistically diverse (CaLD) backgrounds who are either living with or caring for someone with mental illness, or who have expertise in working with CaLD populations to comment once the consultation document has been released. 

For further information about the MHiMA Project please visit the MHiMA website.

Parliamentary news

Seclusion and restraint statistics 

The use of some seclusion practices recorded in mental health facilities is becoming less frequent and, when seclusion is used, episodes are shorter than in the past, according to new information released this week by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare.

The report, Mental health services in Australia-in brief 2015 shows that the use of seclusion has fallen by an average of 10% per year over the last 5 years.

Reminders

Open National Tender to Design and Deliver NDIS Peer Education Workshops

In my last update, Mental Health Australia announced the opening of a national tender requesting Expressions of Interest to design and deliver peer-developed and facilitated workshops that will help mental health consumers and carers engage with the NDIS. More information about the selection criteria is available here.

Expressions of Interest can be submitted electronically to ndis@mhaustralia.org by COB Friday 15 January 2016 (AEST).

4th National No 2 Bullying Conference

The 4th National No 2 Bullying Conference will be held on the Gold Coast in April 2016 and will include a presentation from Children’s e-Safety Commissioner, Mr Alastair MacGibbon.

If you are considering presenting at the Conference, abstract submissions close on 18 January 2016. Presenting at the Conference provides a platform for you to share your knowledge whilst connecting with like-minded professionals.

For further information or to submit your abstract, please visit the conference website