Center for Public Representation

ALERTS & NEWS
From time to time CPR will post items of national and Massachusetts interest on this page.
April 9, 2008: Massachusetts House Bill 2042 will be coming up soon for a vote. This bill, sponsored by Rep. Ruth Balser, would require the Department of Mental Health and the Department of Public Health to jointly regulate the treatment of psychiatric patients in emergency departments, including restraint and seclusion (currently unregulated by Massachusetts in emergency department settings) and involuntary removal of clothing (psych patients who refuse to remove all their clothing for a mental exam are stripped involuntarily by security guards). While the bill does not specify the substance of the regulations, a consensus group has been meeting for the past several months and has come up with suggestions (around forced removal of clothing, for example) that might be adopted as regulations if this bill were to pass.
The bill has just been released from the Policy and Steering Committee and is due for a vote in the next two weeks. If you want to let your legislator know how you feel about the bill, addresses for House members are available here.
March 2008: Health Decisions of Massachusetts will be sponsoring a national conference on advance directives in Boston on May 7 & 8, 2008. Information about the conference is available by using the link above or by scrolling to the bottom of this page.
December 2007: The Boston Globe Spotlight Team wrote a compelling three part series on Massachusetts' treatment of prisoners with mental illness. The series and accompanying videos can be seen by clicking here.
November 7, 2007: CPR attorney Susan Stefan has an op-ed piece in the Boston Globe about the treatment of people with mental illness in hospital emergency rooms.
September 12, 2007: Arc/Massachusetts (represented by CPR) and the Disability Law Center have joined with the Mass. Department of Mental Retardation in appealing the federal court order regarding the future of Fernald Developmental Center.
August 2007: Arc/Massachusetts and many other advocates and families are urging Governor Patrick to appeal the recent federal court order concerning the future of Fernald State School. You can read the order and the briefs in the Ricci case by clicking here. For even more materials and suggestions about how to advocate with the Governor go to the Arc's website.
August 2007: The National Association of Rights Protection and Advocacy (NARPA) has announced the program for its 2007 annual conference. You can find an up-to-date description of the conference and registration information by going to www.narpa.org or by clicking the icon at the bottom of this page.
November 2006: The Department of Psychiatry, Duke University Medical Center and the Bazelon Center for Mental Health Law have officially launched the National Resource Center on Psychiatric Advance Directives (NRC-PAD), located at: http://www.nrc-pad.org. The NRC-PAD aims to provide mental health consumers, family members, clinicians, and policy-makers with timely information about PADs, including: • Introduction to PADs • Forms to complete PADs • Links to state statutes • Discussion forums • Frequently-Asked-Questions • Past and Up-to-date research.
The NRC-PAD will be a key gathering place for stakeholders to learn about psychiatric advance directives and how to complete these legal documents. The NRC-PAD aims to assist in implementing of laws that support patient self-determination and high quality mental health care.
April 13, 2004: The Third Circuit Court of Appeals decided the important ADA-Olmstead case, Frederick L. v. Department of Public Welfare, today. While upholding the District Court's factual findings and many of its rulings of law, the Court held that short term fiscal constraints alone cannot provide the basis for a fundamental alteration defense to an Olmstead-based case. Also, the court held that a state's past progress in deinstitutionalization, without a commitment to continue that progress, is an insufficient defense. The opinion is available on the 3d Circuit's official web site and other legal web sites. The Center for Public Representation and the Bazelon Center submitted a amici brief on behalf of 14 former state mental health commissioners, in support of the plaintiffs. Read the brief here.
April 5, 2004: Massachusetts mental health services for people who are deaf or hard of hearing. The Center for Public Representation and the Massachusetts Department of Mental Health have signed a memorandum of understanding to increase and improve services to the Department's clients who are deaf and hard of hearing. The agreement will eliminate the need for litigation. To view a copy of the agreement, click here.
January 29, 2003 - Victory in Rolland v. Romney On January 28, 2003, the First Circuit Court of Appeals issued a sweeping decision in the Center for Public Representation’s Rolland v. Cellucci case. . The decision is the first Court of Appeals case which establishes the rights of individuals with mental retardation and developmental disabilities to specialized services in nursing facilities. It recounts the history and purpose of the Nursing Home Reform Amendments (NHRA) as a Congressional directive to prevent the warehousing of individuals with disabilities in nursing homes. The decision also establishes an important precedent for the enforecability of the NHRA and the Medicaid nursing home requirements. It also establishes an important precedent about the enforecability of the federal Medicaid statute and its implementing regulations in light of Supreme Court decisions in Gonzaga and Sandoval. This important victory was substantially aided by an Amici brief written by Howrey Simon Arnold & White on behalf of ARC-USA, NHeLP, NSCLC, the Bazelon Center, NAPAS, NMHA and NAMI. Read the full brief here.
December 16, 2002 - Frederick L. Amici Brief Filed in 3d Circuit CPR and the Bazelon Center have filed an amici brief for 14 former state mental health commissioners in Frederick L. v. Department of Public Welfare. The plaintiffs are residents of Pennsylvania's Norristown State Hospital, who are seeking discharge to community programs, citing their rights under the ADA. The trial court held that the state need not discharge the plaintiffs unless placement would result in an immediate cost savings. The former commissioners argue that the court misunderstood both the ADA and how mental health systems are administered. Read the full brief here.
Oct. 20, 2002 - Currie case settles: After oral argument, but before a decision by the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court, the plaintiff and the state agreed to a financial settlement in Currie v. Group Insurance Commission. Ms. Currie, a state employee disabled by mental illness, challenged provisions of her disability insurance policy which provided her fewer benefits than she would have been entitled to if she was unable to work because of a physical disability. She claimed the policy violated state anti-discrimination law. The Center for Public Representation submitted an amici brief which can be found here

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