00            CS FOR SENATE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION NO. 21(HES)                                                             
01 Supporting the development of adequate in-state treatment capacity for severely                                         
02 disturbed children.                                                                                                     
03 BE IT RESOLVED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA:                                                               
04       WHEREAS, on October 1, 2001, Alaska's Medicaid program funded over 300                                          
05 severely emotionally disturbed Alaska children placed in out-of-state residential treatment                             
06 facilities by the Department of Health and Social Services or private parties; and                                      
07       WHEREAS the total number of all types of licensed child residential beds in Alaska                              
08 is approximately 561, and only 108 of these beds provide the same level of treatment received                           
09 by severely emotionally disturbed children in out-of-state placements; and                                              
10       WHEREAS the lack of in-state residential treatment beds clearly contributes to the                              
11 number of out-of-state placements; and                                                                                  
12       WHEREAS residential treatment beds are a critical component in the continuum of                                 
13 treatment and care for severely emotionally disturbed children; and                                                     
14       WHEREAS providing residential treatment in Alaska allows for increased                                          
15 involvement of a child's family, members of the child's support system, and involved                                    
16 community providers in the child's treatment, thereby improving the quality of care and                                 

01 leading to better outcomes, long-term success, and improved client satisfaction; and                                    
02       WHEREAS subsequent placement in foster care, referral for other treatment, and                                  
03 reintegration of the child back into Alaska communities can be more easily and quickly                                  
04 achieved when a child is discharged from an in-state residential treatment facility, while                              
05 focusing on transition and a variety of local community-based services, in the child's home of                          
06 origin; and                                                                                                             
07       WHEREAS development of residential treatment facilities in Alaska will create local                             
08 construction and institutional jobs;                                                                                    
09       BE IT RESOLVED that the Alaska State Legislature respectfully requests the                                      
10 governor to direct the Department of Health and Social Services to work in conjunction with                             
11 the Alaska Mental Health Board, the Alaska Mental Health Trust Authority, and other                                     
12 interested parties to strengthen the full continuum of residential and community-based care                             
13 and to work in a coordinated, cooperative, collaborative, and partnering manner towards                                 
14 integration of services in Alaska for the treatment of severely emotionally disturbed children;                         
15 and be it                                                                                                               
16       FURTHER RESOLVED that the Alaska State Legislature respectfully requests the                                    
17 governor to encourage the Department of Health and Social Services, the Alaska Mental                                   
18 Health Board, the Alaska Mental Health Trust Authority, and other interested parties to                                 
19 establish as a priority the development of sufficient in-state residential care to serve severely                       
20 emotionally disturbed children who would otherwise be placed in out-of-state facilities.