North Carolina Mental Health Reform Legislation Fails to Pass State House

North Carolina's House of Representatives last week failed to pass the Senate version of a bill set to "overhaul" the state's mental health programs, the AP/Charlotte Observer reports. By a vote of 63-47, the state House rejected the bill because it "dropped a House provision requiring General Assembly approval" before officials would be able to close "any of the state's" mental retardation centers. The Observer reports that the state's mental health programs have been "troubled by mismanagement, aging facilities and limited resources." The state House-passed version (HB 381) would require that 39 local mental health programs be cut to 20 over the next six years, with "more control" going to county managers and commissioners (AP/Charlotte Observer, 9/13). The House-passed bill also contains an amendment that would require the state to distribute funding equally to all local programs. Currently, the state gives some programs "special appropriations" (Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report, 7/27). The vote now moves the bill into negotiations between both state House and state Senate members (AP/Charlotte Observer, 9/13).