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F I S C A L I M P A C T R E P O R T

SPONSOR Picraux

ORIGINAL DATE

LAST UPDATED

01/25/08

HB 150

SHORT TITLE Sandoval County Behavioral Health Services

SB

ANALYST Geisler

APPROPRIATION (dollars in thousands)

Appropriation

Recurring

or Non-Rec

Fund

Affected

FY08

FY09

$86.0

Recurring

General

(Parenthesis ( ) Indicate Expenditure Decreases)

SOURCES OF INFORMATION

LFC Files

Responses Received From

Department of Health (DOH)

Human Services Department (HSD)

SUMMARY

Synopsis of Bill

House Bill 150 would appropriate eighty-six thousand dollars ($86,000) to the Department of

Health (DOH) to fund the Sandoval County family support program's enhancement of its

behavioral health system of care for families receiving the special supplemental nutrition

program for women, infants and children (WIC). Any unexpended balance remaining at the end

of fiscal year 2009 shall revert to the general fund.

FISCAL IMPLICATIONS

DOH notes that the appropriation included in HB 150 is not part of the Department of Health’s

executive budget request. HSD notes that any behavioral health services provided to Medicaid-

eligible individuals would be eligible for federal match if all the following criteria are met: 1)

the service must be a benefit under the NM Medicaid State Plan; 2) the provider must be

credentialed as a Medicaid provider as part of the ValueOptions New Mexico provider network;

3) the provider is providing services in accordance with his or her license.

House Bill 150 – Page

2

SIGNIFICANT ISSUES

DOH notes that there is no defined system of maternal and infant mental health services in New

Mexico. WIC clinics provide an ideal setting for reaching high-risk, low-income families that

frequently fall through the cracks, before they need acute or crisis care. With the exception of the

few very high-risk families who receive assistance at public health clinics, WIC families are

typically on their own as they try to navigate the health care system, which focuses on treatment,

rather than prevention and early intervention.

The FSP takes advantage of these windows of opportunity to identify high-risk families and

provide on-site services in a non-threatening, familiar environment. An effective, WIC-based

system of maternal and infant mental health services can positively impact maternal mental

health, and the physical, emotional, and social development of the State’s many poor children.

The FSP currently includes five bi-lingual Community Health Workers (County employees) who

are funded from a variety of sources including the Sandoval County General Fund, WIC Special

Grant funds, DOH Community Health Initiative Funds, and the Primary Care Association. The

requested funds will be used to add two bi-lingual FSP Community Health Workers (CHWs).

The funds will also be used to expand implementation of the FSP parent/child service delivery

module for WIC families. In January 2008, the FSP will begin to pilot the parent/child service

delivery module with ten families who have enrolled in the CYFD “At Home Infant Care" pilot

project at the Sandoval County Health Commons. This innovative CYFD program provides

subsidies to low-income families with infants to stay at home with their children. With each

additional CHW that is added to the FSP team, 500 more WIC families annually will be screened

and intensive case management services will be provided for approximately 50 families.

OTHER SUBSTANTIVE ISSUES

DOH notes that the Sandoval Commons provides services to needy families in Sandoval County.

Many of the clients are low-income and mono-lingual Spanish speakers. Sandoval County is a

growing county with growing numbers of persons under age 20. Also, 31% of the population

identifies as Hispanic and 16% identifies as Native American.

GG/bb