Mental health advocates urge lawmakers to pass slate of bills during Behavioral Health Day
More than 150 mental health advocates visited the Capitol Wednesday to urge lawmakers to pass a slate of bills and approve funding requests covering a wide range of mental health issues, including the opioid epidemic.
“Behavioral Health Day at the Capitol allows, peers, caregivers, friends and family to unite to talk about mental health issues and work with lawmakers to find solutions,” said Alisa LaPolt, Executive Director of NAMI Florida. “With the current dialogue in the state around the opioid epidemic, it is important that we also address the prevalence of mental illness with opioid addiction and substance use disorder. These issues go hand-in-hand in the majority of cases; we can’t treat one without the other.”
Along those lines, the National Alliance on Mental Illness Florida is in favor of proposals by Sen. Lizbeth Benacquisto and Rep. Jim Boyd (SB 8/HB 21) that would revamp the Prescription Drug Monitoring Program and limit opioid prescriptions in Florida to a three-day supply or a seven-day supply if deemed “medically necessary.”
The group is also looking for the state to commit $25 million in funding to expand services and the authorization to spend another $27.1 million in federal State Targeted Response funds, a request they share with Gov. Rick Scott.
Read more: http://floridapolitics.com/archives/254458-mental-health-advocates-urge-lawmakers-pass-slate-bills-behavioral-health-day