This week’s CBHC Bill Tracking Slate is now available.  Links to the full text of each bill CBHC is tracking, as well as summaries, notes and all CBHC positions, are included.  Also, our weekly Legislative Update provides highlights for behavioral health issues at the State Legislature. 

Colorado First Lady Jeannie Ritter joined community members and representatives from The Center for Mental Health in Montrose, CO at the “Center Affaire” fundraiser in support of mental health issues.    Click here to read more in the Delta County Independent online. 

This Press Release from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services announces the recipients of grant awards to help make health IT available to over 100,000 health providers by 2014.  Colorado received more than $9 million grant dollars to support IT and Health Information Exchange through Colorado Regional Health Information Exchange (CORHIO). 

Click here to read more about the funds awarded to through the National Recovery Act. 

Nate Taylor, writing for the Coloradoan.com, writes a powerful article highlighting the journey of Dana Elworthy, who struggled for the last 30 years with mental illness and substance dependency.  Through appropriate care and the support of others, Dana is now sober and living healthy and happy. 

Read Dana Elworthy’s Story Here  

This week’s CBHC Bill Tracking Slate is now available.  Links to the full text of each bill CBHC is tracking, as well as summaries, notes and all CBHC positions, are included.  Also, our weekly Legislative Update provides highlights for behavioral health issues at the State Legislature. 

Click here to see the CBHC Bill Tracking Slate

Click here to see who won from Colorado! 

“Today, the Departments of Health and Human Services, Education, and Labor released an interim final rule (IFR) providing guidance on how the Paul Wellstone and Pete Domenici Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act must be implemented.” -NCCBH

 The National Council  for Community Behavioral Health has issued a summary of the interim final rule that can be accessed on the Legislative/Public Policy page of the website. 

Click Here to See the Summary and Full Language of the Rule. 

CBHC has begun to track various pieces of legislation introduced to the 2010 Colorado General Assembly.  The CBHC Bill Tracking Slate provides hyperlinks to the full text of the bills we are tracking, the sponsors of the legislation, and status updates.  This slate will be updated on a weekly basis.

Click here to see the 2010 CBHC Bill Tracking Slate

West Central Mental Health Center was selected as the 2009 Winner of the CBHC Golden Light Bulb Award for Excellence in the Clinical Arena at this fall’s CBHC Annual Training Conference in Breckenridge, Colorado. 

Click here to read an article in the Daily Recorder and to learn more about their Parnters in Care Program. 

This article by Benedict Carey in the New York Times presents recent findings published in the Journal of the American Medical Association discussing the effects of some widely prescribed anti-depression drugs.  The study found that the effect of these drugs on mild to moderate depression may only be as effective as placebo pills.

Click here to read about the implications of the study.