Community mental health contract program.

ORIGINAL
Senate
ENGROSSED
File No
.
SF0142

ENROLLED ACT NO. 87,

SENATE

SIXTY-FOURTH LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WYOMING
2017 General Session

AN ACT relating to community mental health and substance use services; authorizing the creation of a contract program for mental health and substance use treatment programs to reduce the demand for involuntary commitments; providing an appropriation; authorizing the expenditure of funds appropriated for involuntary commitments for program operation as specified; authorizing the department of health to enter into contracts for operation of the program as specified; requiring annual reports; amending eligibility provisions concerning department of health contracts with private agencies; prohibiting fees to clients for gatekeeping services as specified; and providing for an effective date.

Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Wyoming:

Section
1
.

(a)

The department
may
develop a contract program to incentivize
programs
and providers

to reduce the need for involuntary commitments to the state hospital
and other designated hospitals
by
encouraging
the performance of the
following functions
:

(
i
)

Performing gatekeeping functions
in the involuntary commitment process under
t
itle 25
, chapter 10
of
the
Wyoming statu
t
es;
and

(ii)

Preventing psychiatric ho
spitalization through diversion.

(b)

To implement subsection (a) of this section, the department may
contract with programs or providers.
The department
may
require each
participating

program
or provider

to provide additional services to its
clients

equivalent in value to fifty percent (50%) of the funds expended pursuant to subsection (a) of this section
.

(
c
)

The department shall make a report by November 1 of each year through 2019 to the joint labor, health and social services interim committee, and to the joint appropriations committee if requested by that committee, regarding the status of the
contract program authorized
by this
section
. The 2017 report may include, and subsequent reports shall include, an evaluation of the
contract program's
impacts on populations served and other systems affected by the
contract program
.

Section 2
.

W.S. 35
‑
1
‑
624(
a)(v)
is

amended to read:

35
‑
1
‑
624
.

Contracts with private agencies; eligibility
.

(a)

To be eligible to contract with the department, a private agency shall:

(v)

Charge clients fees at a rate comparable to the uniform schedule of fees for services that have been promulgated by the division. Private agencies may charge a reasonable fee for those services not covered in the division's uniform fee schedule.
No fee
s
shall be charged for
gatekeeping
services
provided
pursuant to title 25, c
hapter 10,
a
rticle
1 of the Wyoming statutes
.

Section 3.

There is appropriated five hundred thousand dollars ($500,000.00) from the tobacco settlement trust income account to the department of health. This appropriation shall be for the period beginning with the effective date of this act and ending June 30, 2018. This appropriation shall only be expended for the purpose of
implementing the contract program authorized by this act. Notwithstanding any other provision of law, this appropriation shall not be transferred or expended for any other purpose and any unexpended, unobligated funds remaining from this appropriation shall revert as provided by law on June 30, 2018.

Section
4.

T
his act is effective immediately upon completion of all acts necessary for a bill to become law as provided by Article 4, Section 8 of the Wyoming Constitution.

(END)

Speaker of the House

President of the Senate

Governor

TIME APPROVED: _________

DATE APPROVED: _________

I hereby certify that this act originated in the
Senate
.

Chief Clerk

1