submission

This is a joint submission from the Mental Health Council of Australia and the National Mental Health Consumer and Carer Forum in response to the Interim Report by the Reference Group on Welfare Reform. It addresses and responds to what we believe are the key issues for the mental health sector (including consumers and carers) arising out the Interim Report.

The MHCA has responded to the Australian Law Reform Commission’s Discussion Paper into its Inquiry into Equality, Capacity and Disability in Commonwealth Laws. The MHCA broadly supports the ALRC ’s proposals regarding supported decision-making, but is disappointed that more specific recommendations about mental health and insurance have not been made.

Read our latest submission to the National Mental Health Commission’s Review. Also discussed it the formation of NATSILMH , a meeting of the National Complex Needs Alliance and Activity Based Funding

The Mental Health Council of Australia ( MHCA ) has today called for a decade of systemic reform of Australia’s mental health system, as it released its third submission to the National Mental Health Commission’s Review of Mental Health Services and Programs. “For too long Australia has had a substandard mental health ‘system’. Services and systems are poorly integrated, overseen by different parts of government, based on widely differing organising principles, and not working towards a common goal for improved outcomes,” MHCA CEO Frank Quinlan said.

This is the third submission from the Mental Health Council of Australia ( MHCA ) to the National Mental Health Commission ( NMHC ) to inform the NMHC ’s current review of mental health programmes. It articulates the MHCA ’s priorities for the mental health system going forward. The contents are informed by detailed consultations with consumers and carers and other mental health stakeholders and proposes priorities and actions to drive long term policy and systemic reforms

The MHCA has made a submission to the National Mental Health Commission’s formal consultation process as part of its review of mental health programs and services. The submission attempts to identify structural and systemic levers for reform, while still making recommendations for actions that are practical and achievable in a reasonable timeframe.

Read about the National Mental Health Commission’s Review, how we are aiming to co-design the world’s best mental health system, the CHFA National Roundtable on Housing and the NDIS and download our Submission to the inquiry into affordable housing.

The MHCA provided a submission to the Senate Inquiry into Affordable Housing. In our submission we recommended that people with lived experience of mental illness be recognised as a priority group in future housing and homelessness agreements; recommended that the National Partnership Agreement on Homelessness be re-funded for a further five years; and endorsed the continuation of current strategies aimed at growing the community housing sector to ensure that there are increased housing options available for people with lived experience of mental illness.

Following the release of the Terms of Reference, the MHCA wrote to Professor Allan Fels, Chair of the National Mental Health Commission, to offer support and assistance to the National Mental Health Commission’s Review of Mental Health Services and Programmes. In doing so, the MHCA also highlighted a number of issues that it believes must be given high priority throughout the course of the review.

The MHCA ’s 2014-15 budget submission proposes a range of no-cost, low-cost and long-standing recommendations that will help build an Australian mental health system that is holistic, integrated and that delivers better support for people with a lived experience of mental illness and their carers.