Mental Health

Another comment on a previous topic: Bill Richardson's presidential health care plan. I came across a report that said he also supported the idea of giving parity to mental health coverage in his universal health care plan. This is a bipartisan concept that long has been pushed by New Mexico's Republican Sen. Pete Domenici.

Meanwhile, back at home, the ACLU has a court case that has delayed implementation of some program cuts by ValueOptions, the state's contractor for government-supported mental health services. The company rightly points out that its contract doesn't require provision of those services and it no longer can afford to support them. And Richardson did ask for more money in the next state budget to pay for them, but he didn't push for the funding again in the special session after lawmakers didn't approve the money in the regular session.

New Mexico has gotten lots of national attention for its effort to centralize state-provided mental health services through one contract. It is an innovative attempt to streamline and standardize services, getting more bang for the buck.

But that's the point. Critics have noted that Richardson wants to get credit for making improvements without having to put more money into mental health services. Some additional has been provided, in dribs and drabs, most notedly for autism in the most recent session. I don't know if that's enough to bring New Mexico up from dead last in its ranking among states for spending on mental health.

During his tenure, there has been enough money, apparently, for spaceports and trains and tax cuts.