Ohioans are dying from lack of access to vital services due to years of neglect in the state budget.
In a recent statewide poll, 2 out of every 3 Ohioans stated they were impacted by a friend or family member with an addiction and / or mental illness
- Based on the most recent statistics, suicides in Ohio are at a 10 year high. Most suicides (43%) occur in men between the ages of 36 and 65
- In Ohio, the annual deaths related to unintentional drug / medication overdoses are higher than the annual deaths due to vehicular accidents
How do we ensure access to life saving behavioral health services so that more Ohioans don't die needlessly?
1. Fund behavioral healthcare Medicaid Match from the state's 525 budget that was established specifically for Medicaid Match. It is no longer acceptable to shift costs to the local communities to pay for diseases of the brain while the costs for every other organ of the body are paid for from a well funded line in the state budget. This is stigma at its worst and must be corrected!
2. The local community levy for behavioral health services was never intended to offset the costs of a federal and state entitlement. These funds were intended to provide vital services to local residents not covered by these entitlements.
3. State funding for behavioral health care that was cut by @ $2 million locally must not be cut any further.
We have a choice now - Either provide our families and loved ones with the treatment they need so that they can live full and productive lives at a fraction of the cost of providing care in emergency rooms, jails, prisons, and long term care facilities at a massive cost.
Please tell our local legislators Senator Keith Faber, Representatives Matt Huffman, Cliff Hite, and John Adams that our families and our communities are depending on them to make the right choice.
Mike Schoenhofer
