Bad Government Policy Doesn't Require Party Affiliation

This shouldn't be any surprise to people, but bad policy comes from every political corner. If you're an ideologue this is harder to accept. Liberal or conservative positions are always right - right? No. The reality is that nothing is that concrete, infallible, infinite or whatever other word you want to use. Issues and people are much more complex then that.

In New York State we have a Democratic Governor who has been touted as a liberal, a progressive, a nouveau mix of compassionate liberal/conservative and so on. He is also, whether he admits it or not, interested in the 2016 Presidential nomination. That interest, in the muddled water of national politics, requires positions that appeal to many different forces and factions.

The mood of the average taxpayer makes it imperative to cut taxes, which in turn means cutting expenses and reducing services. Very seldom is the revenue side of anything viewed as a major part of the equation. It is less seldom that the human impact of policy decisions are measured carefully once the public relations aspect of a policy move kicks in.

A great example of all of this right now revolves around mental health and what some refer to as behavioral health issues. What's interesting, is that these issues and decisions have both national and local impacts. The Governor, in an effort to reduce expenses, has proposed the closure of a substantial number of psychiatric centers and developmental centers across the state of NY. From a number of progressive or liberal positions, that seems initially great. People shouldn't have to endure institutional care in any form. It's dehumanizing and ineffective. It's also expensive, so cuts will certainly please the more conservative among us. Seems like a win/win. But it's not. You see, this is where bad policy can come from - making decisions that will supposedly please all sides and ultimately doing it for your own benefit.

One of the problems we have is that mental health is, as it should be, in the forefront of very serious discussions about violence in this country. In that discussion there is and can be a lot of misinformation, confusion and jumping to conclusions, an example being that all people with mental illness can be or are violent. Or that people with intellectual or developmental disabilities are mentally ill and therefore could be violent. Or that those people can't have a mental illness in addition. There are scores of things that need to be sorted out in these discussions and there are some very responsible media reports dealing with these issues. There are also irresponsible and inaccurate reports.

As institutional settings are eliminated, the very real need for and where a discussion should take place, is about what community supports will replace those institutional settings. In addition, it should be recognized right off the bat, that 'community supports' includes the state's responsibility for continued involvement. Otherwise we have the ultimate bad government policy of just shifting responsibility from one place to another.

Community supports for people in behavioral crisis are absolutely necessary and their existence in NYS today varies widely. Ask hospital administrators, emergency room doctors or social service agencies if they are prepared to deal with people in crises in local communities today. Ask sheriffs or other police agencies if they deal with these crises and if they feel they are prepared. In many cases, you'll find that our jails have become the new institutional setting for people with mental health issues. And what about the person with Asperger's Syndrome, Autism, Cerebral Palsy or Down Syndrome? Can they have a mental health problem in addition to that primary disability? Of course they can.

Shifting costs and shifting responsibilities without proper planning or supports is the height of irresponsibility and has the potential of leading to real human tragedy. Clearly Democrats as well as Republicans can make bad public policy. But another question remains. Where are the advocates - self advocates, family member advocates, non-profit advocates, etc.? Where are the people saying hold on, let's do this the right way. Let's plan and combine resources and supports. In the end people with mental health issues and communities will suffer and a tragedy will have to happen to get our attention once again. Bad government policy has no party affiliation.