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Mentally ill should
have access to all
available medication

Gov. Linda Lingle deserves applause for her commitment to supporting mental health by signing into law Senate Bill 761 -- which adds four disorders to the list of insured mental illnesses -- and for sharing her own personal family experience with mental illness. This goes a long way in destigmatizing an illness that affects at least one in five people and improves treatments for individuals that will promote enhanced and productive lives.

However, the members of the Mental Health Legislative Coalition believe the governor's commitment has stopped prematurely by including SB 1420 on her list of bills to veto.

The purpose of this measure is to prohibit the state Department of Human Services from restricting payment for a recipient's access to psychotropic medications that are not on the Food and Drug Administration's preferred list. This means DHS would pay only for the most commonly used drugs and exclude newer medications that might better suit a patient's needs.

The coalition supports unrestricted access to medications for consumers within the different mental health systems in Hawaii. Consumers should be afforded prescription medications without fail-first methodologies or requiring professionals to justify prescribing a medication not on a preferred list.

The members of the mental health coalition -- representing 32 nonprofit advocacy organizations and councils -- appreciate Hawaii legislators for their ongoing commitment to individuals with mental illness by passing legislation, including SB 761 and SB 1420.

The plight of Hawaii's mentally ill remains one of our state's greatest challenges. Patients are oppressed by persistent stigmas. Formularies tie physicians' hands. Frequently mental illness is not seen as physical, and thus trails other diseases in the battle for resources, treatments and services.

However, mental illness does lead the way in barriers, restrictions and discrimination.

It is important to note that currently more than 20 states have legislation similar to SB 1420 or administrative rules that protect the availability of mental health medications.

If vetoed, restricting access to mental health medications will lead to a number of unintended consequences that will negatively affect the recovery of individuals with mental illness and lead to increased costs to the state budget. It is extremely critical that prescribers and people with a mental illness have the ability to select the most appropriate medications without artificial restrictions.

The Mental Health Legislative Coalition encourages the governor's continued support of mental health, and we ask her to reconsider SB 1420. This will save the state money and provide people with mental illness access to the medications they need.

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