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DDES INFO MEMO 2004-08

December 23, 2004

STATE OF WISCONSIN
Department of Health and Family Services
Division of Disability and Elder Services

To:
Area Administrators/ Human Services Area Coordinators
Bureau Directors
County Departments of Community Programs Directors
County Departments of Developmental Disabilities Services Directors
County Departments of Human Services Directors
County Departments of Social Services Directors
Section Chiefs/Licensing Chiefs
Tribal Chairpersons/Human Services Facilitators

From: 
Sinikka Santala
Administrator

Re: 
Mental Health Block Grant (MHBG)

In July 2004, DDES Memo 2004-10 was sent to all counties from the Division of Disability and Elder Services regarding counties’ use of Mental Health Block Grant (MHBG) funds in Calendar Year 2005. It may have appeared from that memo that Supported Housing was the only Mental Health Block Grant-funded service for which the homeless mentally ill should receive priority. Counties are being asked to prioritize their efforts to serve seriously mentally ill individuals who are homeless for all MHBG-funded services.

Counties are required to make the reporting of data for individuals who are homeless in accordance with the specifications for the HSRS Mental Health Module a priority. Data describing individuals who are homeless may be recorded in two fields in HSRS:

  1. Use Code 80 to indicate an individual is homeless as a Client Characteristic (Field 7), and/or
  2. Use Code 1 to indicate an individual lives on the street or in a shelter to describe the Residential Arrangement (Field 37) for individuals who meet the criteria for inclusion in the Consumer Status Data Set.

Mental Health Block Grant funds may be used in ANY of the priority program areas to provide mainstream mental health services to persons who have a serious mental illness and are homeless. All of the priority program areas mentioned in the memo and the associated Human Services Reporting System (HSRS) Standard Program Category (SPC) codes are listed below. Counties should continue to use these eight priority program areas to complete the annual County Reporting Form for MHBG expenditures.

1. Community Support Programs (SPC 509)

2. Supported Housing (SPC 106)

3. Jail Diversion (SPC 507, 509)

4. Crisis Intervention (SPC 501)

5. Family and Consumer Peer Support and Self-Help (SPC 408)

6. Services for Children and Adolescents with SED (SPC 103, 604, 501,507, 704)

  1. Programs for Persons with Mental Illness and Substance Abuse Problems (SPC 507, 508)
  2. Community Mental Health Data Set Development (no HSRS SPC data needed)

Counties use the SPC codes above to record delivered services in HSRS when MHBG funds are used. However, counties should record all services delivered to all consumers with a serious mental illness who are homeless in HSRS regardless of whether the MHBG is used to fund these services.

If you or your staff have any questions about how to report HSRS data for persons who have a serious mental illness and are homeless, please contact Tim Connor at the BMHSAS, 608-261-6744.

REGIONAL OFFICE CONTACT: 
Area Administrator

CENTRAL OFFICE CONTACT: 
Tim Connor
Supervisor
BMHSAS
(608)261-6744
connotg@dhfs.state.wi.us

MEMO WEB SITE:
http://dhfs.wisconsin.gov/partners/local.htm

___________________________________________________________

Attachment:

BRIEF BUDGET REQUEST AND SIGNATURE OF AGREEMENT
TO USE THE MENTAL HEALTH/AODA FUNCTIONAL SCREEN
BY JUNE 30, 2005.

 

Agency Name:

___________________________________________

 

Agency Address:

____________________________________________

 

Telephone # of Contact Person:

___________________________________________

 

BUDGET: ITEM AMOUNT

   
   
   
   

This agency agrees to use the funding available by June 30, 2005

This agency agrees to start using the screen for new CSP admissions in 2005

This agency agrees to screen on-going CSP participants on an annual basis, starting in 2005.

 

Signature: 


Agency Director_______________________________Date:_________

CSP Coordinator______________________________Date:__________

 

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