Darrell Steinberg and the Campaign for Mental Health

Thanks To All of Our Fellow Travelers

Now that we're getting so close to the election and getting more press and momentum, I've noticed that more and more people are commenting to me that when they first heard of the idea that is now Prop. 63, they really didn't think this was going to happen.

It's true that in the beginning, it was just a few of us with an idea. And it wasn't easy to find encouraging words. Most people just didn't think it would happen.

Then our volunteers stepped up. In the signature-gathering phase of this effort, our volunteers collected over 100,000 signatures. This is absolutely unprecedented, to my knowledge. Usually there are about 10,000 volunteer signatures, and initiative proponents have to pay signature-gatherers to get the rest of them.

I think the major reason people thought we couldn't make Prop. 63 happen was that we didn't have a benefactor -- a major donor behind the idea. Our volunteers stepped up again. This campaign has been financed at a grassroots level, which, again, is very unusual for a ballot initiative.

Last Tuesday evening, when I was at the event in Cupertino, someone told me that she has received several emails about Prop. 63 from various friends throughout the state. Our volunteers are stepping up again to make our Internet campaign a success and to make sure that we get the votes we need to pass Prop. 63 on November 2.

I just can't begin to express the gratitude I feel for every single person who has joined with us.

Another thing I've noticed is that anytime I go to an event for Prop. 63, I feel like I am among good friends -- even with people I've never met in my life. We are fellow travelers in this cause, and there's an unspoken connection among us. It has been such a pleasure, and such a positive experience, so unexpected, for me to meet all of these people who have deep and genuine commitment to the mental health cause.

In the Capitol, there's not a big mental health lobbying contingent. We've really got to keep our momentum going for mental health even after November 2. When there's a mental health issue before the Legislature anytime in the future, you all can make a difference in the outcome. Please make sure you and your friends who are part of this cause are on our email list so we can keep you all informed about issues in the future.

Cupertino Event

Got home late last evening from the fundraiser in Cupertino. It was, as always, such a pleasure to spend an evening with 70 or 80 people who are supporters of Prop. 63. Several people at the event told me that the cuts to mental health services over the last several decades has resulted in a situation in which Santa Clara County must turn away 70 percent of people who qualify for mental health services, which amounts to tens of thousands of adults and children each year.

The law requires counties to provide mental health services only to the extent that resources from the local revenue fund are available to counties. The people who receive the services are the ones who need them the most. They are the most severely mentally ill, and those who have hit bottom -- they've landed in jail or in a hospital or they are homeless. There is no money to serve the others who haven't yet hit bottom. And prevention programs are only a dream.

Needless to say, there is strong support in Santa Clara County for creating a dedicated funding source of $1 billion a year to fund the adults' and children's systems of care, to establish prevention and early intervention programs, to establish innovative programs, and to fund capital facilities and human resources for mental health. All of this, Prop. 63 will do.

Is Prevention A Moral Obligation?

Yesterday, a member of my staff attended a lecture by Dr. Ira Chasnoff, a pediatrician from Chicago who specializes in prevention issues relating to children. I wish I could have been there for the lecture. Dr. Chasnoff began his medical lecture by asking the philosophical question of whether prevention is a moral obligation. If we know from study after study that prevention and early intervention works, what is our obligation as a society?

Dr. Chasnoff's message is related to drug and alcohol abuse, and the impact of a mother's substance abuse on unborn babies, but the question is the same as it relates to mental health. We know that prevention programs keep adults and children in their homes and in their jobs and schools and out of jails and juvenile detention facilities. We know that we can prevent mental illness from becoming severe and disabling in most cases. We know that prevention reduces the likelihood of suicides and suicide attempts. And we know that many people who want prevention services can't access them because there is inadequate funding to make them available to everyone who wants them. Prop. 63 is our opportunity to change that--to make those services accessible and available to people who want them.

Tonight I am flying to San Jose to speak at a fundraiser for Prop. 63. I feel the pressure as the election nears. These last five weeks count so much in the outcome of this election. I'm doing everything I can to raise the money we need to get our message out, and I know that hundreds of others are working right along with me. Please continue to help us get our message out.

Programs Proven to Be Effective

We received a question by email as follows:

"'Proposition 63 expands mental health care for children and adults, using programs proven to be effective.'

"I would like to support programs proven to be effective. Which ones will the money from Prop 63 use?"

Prop. 63 will expand on programs such as the Early Mental Health Initiative, the Children's System of Care, and the Adults and Older Adults System of Care. The outcomes measures that show the effectiveness of these programs are on the web site of the State Department of Mental Health. The AB 34 programs that I've discussed before are part of the Adults and Older Adults System of Care, and were recognized as a model program by President Bush's New Freedom Commission on Mental Health.

In addition, Prop. 63 will fund capital facilities, human resources, innovative programs, and prevention and early intervention programs. Many of the programs that will be funded under the innovative programs and prevention and early intervention programs portions of Prop. 63 will likely be modeled after programs that receive one-time grant money from the Prop. 10 commission--the California Commission on Families and Children, also known as the "First 5 Commission."

It's important to know that no program will get continued funding under Prop. 63 unless it is effective. I have no intention of throwing money anywhere, and I and dozens of people - providers, clients, and more - have worked hard to put together an initiative that will fund only programs that work and that are effective.

State Senate Hearing on Prop 63

Yesterday the Senate held its statutorily required hearing on Prop. 63, and it went well. First up for testimony were several people from the Legislative Analyst's Office and the Franchise Tax Board. It was evident that these agencies had been analyzing Prop. 63 for a substantial amount of time in order to determine if it works, or if cleanup legislation will be necessary before implementation. We got their seal of approval -- Prop. 63 works.

I presented and answered questions, and then Dr. Sandra Naylor Goodwin of the California Institute for Mental Health, Patricia Ryan of the California Mental Health Directors Association, and Megan Stanton, who is a board member of the Clients Network, all testified as to the need for the services Prop. 63 will fund. There was a period for public comment, but none was offered.

Everyone who testified did an excellent job, in my opinion, but I was particularly moved by Megan's testimony, as were several of the members present. Megan testified that she suffered from depression, unnoticed and undiagosed, most of her life. She attempted suicide at age 25, and then got into treatment. Megan considers herself recovered now--10 years later. She works with people with mental disabilities, and said that Prop. 63 is the light at the end of the tunnel for them. Right now, when the people with whom she works try to get services, they get long lines and long waits instead much of the time. Despite their desire for help and their efforts to get help, they can't do it. Prop. 63 will give them a real choice--if they want services, they will be able to get them. Megan testified about access being the key.

Keep up the good work, make sure you contact Vance at [email protected] if you're interested in distributing the Flash animation to your organization's various lists. Your participation will be critical as we continue to get the word out about Prop. 63.

Funded Opposition

We have good information that we now have funded opposition. What that means is that organizations or individuals, or both, have put up money to get their "No on 63" message out to voters.

It's more important than ever for us to work together as we close in on election day. Please continue to email your friends about Prop. 63. Also, if you have an email list and you would like to send to the people on your list an email, perhaps coauthored by you and me, with our movie featuring Ed Asner and describing Prop. 63, please contact Vance Hickin at [email protected]. We want to use this movie to get the Prop. 63 word out as far and wide as possible before the election.

Only six weeks until election day, and we have so much work to do.

Statewide House Party Night/Campaign News

House parties for Prop. 63 take place statewide tomorrow!. If you're not already planning to attend a party, please go to our house party page and find one in your area. It should be a great night, and I'm looking forward to meeting many of you in person.

Today, Rusty Selix and I flew to Los Angeles to meet with the editorial board of the Los Angeles Times. Last Tuesday, we met with the editorial board of the San Francisco Chronicle. We're putting together our statewide campus tour, and I hope to have many interesting copresenters along with me. Details to follow.

The Treatment and Services Funded by Prop. 63/Statewide House Party Night

I'm aware that some have called Prop. 63 a "failed attempt" to provide treatment and services to people with severe mental illness. Fact is, the services funded by Prop. 63 will not be static. Prop. 63 was developed and composed to enact a law that will establish a system that will be able to change and grow--because mental health is a changing field, with new "best practices" being established on an ongoing basis, and research breakthroughs occurring every day.

Under Prop. 63, counties will conduct a public review and hearing process every year to develop an updated three-year plan. Programs will be funded under one of the categories under Prop. 63 to the extent that they establish that they are able to provide services that are effective and successful and that lead to positive outcomes for the clients.

Prop. 63 will fund innovative programs, prevention and early intervention programs, services for adults and for children, capital facilities, and human resources development. Outcomes for each program will be evaluated, and only those programs that work the best will be funded, on a continual basis, with Prop. 63 money.

Counties will be required to change their approach to respond to new evidence of best practices and better outcomes. Prop. 63 money will fund programs that are proven to be successful in terms of positive outcomes.

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The Prop 63 Statewide House Party is this Saturday--September 18. I'll be at Rusty Selix's, Virginia Knowlton's, and Ellen McCormick's parties. Hope to see you there!

The Staglin Family Music Festival

On Saturday, I was part of the Staglin family fundraiser for mental health in Napa. The day began with a symposium, with a lecture by Dr. Thomas Insel, Director of the National Institute of Mental Health, regarding the latest research developments in the area of biologically based brain disorders. The other parts of his message were about reducing the stigma associated with mental illness and about the importance of family support.

Dr. Insel prefers to speak in terms of discrimination and civil rights violations, rather than "stigma". It's true that we need to work to reduce both the stigma against mental illness and the discrimination against people with mental disabilities, and we need to put an end to the civil rights violations against people with mental disabilities. Dr. Insel remembers the time when people didn't talk about cancer. That's changed, and it will change with respect to mental disabilities as well. We'll keep doing our part.

The symposium was followed by a wine tasting event in the caves of the Staglin Family Vineyard, a concert by Norman Brown and his band, and a poolside dinner. Yesterday's event raised almost $2,000,000, thanks to the contributions of literally hundreds of people who came together at the Staglin home.

The Staglin family became involved in this cause because their son, Brandon Staglin, a very intelligent, handsome, articulate man now in his early 30's, was diagnosed with schizophrenia over a decade ago. Just last week, the San Francisco Chronicle published an article about Brandon's challenges and his successes, and those of his family in coming together in support of Brandon and in support of the cause of finding better prevention and early intervention strategies for biologically based brain disorders, and ultimately a cure.

Over the past 10 years since Brandon's diagnosis, the Staglin family has raised over $20,000,000 for the cause. This family has been a model of family support, and they've gone beyond that. They've been a model of community support for the cause. It was inspiring to me to see that support, and the impact that one family can have in terms of raising public awareness, reducing discrimination, and raising millions of dollars by dedicating themselves to this cause.

Statewide Campus Tour

We've launched out statewide campus tour for Prop. 63. I'll be travelling statewide to speak on campus at every college I can get to between now and the election. I hope to be joined in these events by professors who are on the cutting edge of research and clinical work, and also by students.

The purposes of this campus tour are several. We want to do our part in raising public awareness about mental disabilities. We want to share with students the career opportunities in mental health because Prop. 63 will provide a significant amount of funding in the first few years to address the shortage of people who work in the mental health field. Also, we want to raise awareness among professors about how they might team up with Prop. 63 to do their work. And, finally, we want to get out the vote.

We need your help, though. If you are a student or if you work at a campus and you would like to help organize an event at your college, please contact our Statewide Field Director, Dena Bloomgarden, at [email protected].

In addition to being an organizer at your campus, you can volunteer right now, whether you're a student or affiliated with a college or not, by emailing your friends or relatives who are students or who work on a college campus. Tell them about YESon63.org and our new Prop 63 on Campus effort.

I look forward to getting out on behalf of Prop. 63, and to meeting the young up-and-comers in our colleges. I've been waiting all year for this opportunity