November 2018: As you may know, California is experiencing a devastating wave of wildfires that are continuing day by day. From the Camp Fire in the northern part of the state near Chico, to the Woolsey fire in Ventura and LA counties, as well as several other smaller fires, wildfires are consuming hundreds of thousands of acres of natural areas as well as homes and businesses. The scope of the losses is staggering: thousands of structures have been destroyed, lives have been lost, communities have been completely consumed by the flames.

As a mental health provider with program locations in these areas, we are acutely and sorrowfully aware of how our employees, the people we serve, and these communities are being affected by the fires. We encourage you to help in any way you can.

How You Can Help

DONATE MONEY:                            

American Red Cross

California Community Foundation’s Wildfire Relief Fund

California Fire Foundation

The New York Times has listed several other ways to help:

DONATE GOODS:                            

Currently, monetary donations are needed most. However, if you wish to donate goods, we suggest inquiring with your local Goodwill to find out what is needed in your area, or donate to your local food bank.

������Ƶ is a mental health care provider that offers recovery-centered programs and solutions for people with serious mental illness and complex needs. We serve 30,000 individuals per year, many of whom have severe mental illness and are gravely disabled.

As such, we are in full support of AB1971, co-sponsored by the with the and the . We support this important step toward helping people receive respectful, necessary, quality care. The bill has passed out of its house of origin and is awaiting committee hearings in the second house. 

What AB1971 Does

AB1971 updates the criteria to consider someone gravely disabled, expanding the definition to include those who are unable to recognize or care for their own urgent physical medical needs because of their mental illness.

Why We Support AB1971

The number of homeless people who are dying on the streets has nearly doubled since 2013. Last year, Los Angeles County alone reported 831 deaths, with the total number statewide reaching into the thousands. Many of these deaths were due to untreated physical illnesses such as sepsis and other infections, diabetes, heart conditions, and life-threatening injuries.

This bill helps to support those gravely ill persons who are unable to care for their own physical needs due to mental illness.

For More Information

As you may know, California continues to experience a devastating wave of wildfires. The most recent fire outbreaks have been in Ventura and Los Angeles Counties, and are spreading to other nearby counties. The fires have destroyed hundreds of thousands of acres of natural areas as well as homes and businesses. Thousands have already been evacuated and thousands more are expected to be evacuated in the coming days, as the fires move into densely populated areas. Firefighters have warned of extreme fire risk, with high winds and dry conditions prevalent across the region. The smoke has temporarily closed Highway 101, a major freeway in the area, and several schools and businesses have closed due to smoke and fire risk.

As a mental health provider with program locations in these areas, we are acutely and sorrowfully aware of how our employees, the people we serve, and these communities are being affected by the fires. We have made a donation to the Red Cross on behalf of everyone at ������Ƶ to help with general disaster relief.

Important to Know:

• We have heard reports that Lyft is offering free rides up to $40 for evacuees to evacuation centers in LA County who used the promo code "LASAFERIDES." You may wish to confirm this in your area. 

Fire Evacuation information:

• Los Angeles County closures, evacuation map and alerts:
• Ventura County evacuation and fire alerts:
• Santa Barbara County evacuation and fire alerts:
• San Diego County evacuation and fire alerts:

 How You Can Help:

Donate Money: 
(Ventura County) Thomas Fire Fund: The United Way of Ventura County, American Red Cross of Ventura County and the Ventura County Sheriff’s Office of Emergency Services have teamed up to create the Thomas Fire Fund.

• Donations can be made by texting UWVC to 41444, on  or over the phone at 805-485-6288.
• Checks with “Thomas Fire Fund” in the memo line can be mailed to 702 County Square Drive, Suite 100, Ventura, CA 93003.

(Los Angeles): Red Cross LA

• Cash donations to the Los Angeles Area Red Cross can be made here:

YouCaring

• YouCaring, an online crowd-funding platform, has created  with all of its campaigns for Southern California wildfire relief.

Humane Society of Ventura County

• The  is in need of donations after taking in more than 300 animals since the fires began in early December.

LA County Animal Care Foundation

• The is also seeking donations for rescued animal care and support

Donate Time: American Red Cross/Other Volunteer Opportunities
Volunteers of all kinds are encouraged to register with the Red Cross.  Licensed clinical mental health workers are especially needed to provide support in the communities affected. 
To find out how to help, call: 707- 577-7600 or go to the to sign up to volunteer.

As you may know, California is experiencing a devastating wave of wildfires that are continuing
day by day. From the northern Bay Area to the Santa Cruz mountains, to the hills and mountainsaround Los Angeles, wildfires are consuming hundreds of thousands of acres of natural areas as well as homes and businesses. The scope of the losses is staggering: thousands of structures have been destroyed, lives have been lost, communities have been completely consumed by the flames.

As a mental health provider with program locations in these areas, we are acutely and sorrowfully aware of how our employees, the people we serve, and these communities are being affected by the fires. We are making a donation to the Red Cross on behalf of everyone at ������Ƶ to help with general disaster relief.

How You Can Help:

Donate Money: 

Donate Time: American Red Cross/Other Volunteer Opportunities
Volunteers of all kinds are encouraged to register with the Red Cross.  Licensed clinical mental health workers are needed to provide support in the communities affected. 
To find out how to help, call: 707- 577-7600 or go to https://tinyurl.com/yawtps5e to sign up to volunteer.  

You can also contact Ricardo Martinez, DGS Chief Procurement Officer, at 916-317-6451 or ricardo.martinez@dgs.ca.gov 

Alameda County licensed clinicians are encouraged to volunteer as well: for more information on how to volunteer with the County efforts, please contact Todd.stephenson@acgov.org.

More Resources:

As you may have heard, the latest effort to repeal the ACA is currently very close to being voted on. ������Ƶ opposes this bill, as it would eliminate expanded Medicaid funding for so many of the people we serve, sabotaging state initiatives to address the overdose crisis and fight substance use disorders. Cutting or capping Medicaid and ending the Medicaid expansion will be devastating to those who can’t afford health care in the private market. It would allow states to eliminate requirements that private insurance cover substance use disorders and mental illness. It would also allow them to eliminate protections for people with pre-existing illnesses. This bill would disproportionally affect the people we serve in so many ways.

������Ƶ is sending letters to Senators in the states we serve. If you feel moved to do so, please contact your senator right away. Please call your Senator urging them to vote NO on the bill. You can call 888-852-0653, which allows you to contact your member of Congress.

The National Association of County Behavioral Health & Developmental Disability Directors also offers these facts for crafting your own message. 

FACTS YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT THE LATEST GOP HEALTH CARE REPEAL (GRAHAM-CASSIDY)

1.     MASSIVE STATE BY STATE FUNDING CUTS. The released a report showing in 2027, every state in the nation would see federal funding cuts under Graham-Cassidy, totaling nearly $300 billion.

2.             NO FULL CBO SCORE. The announced it would not be able to produce a complete analysis on Graham-Cassidy that includes the impact on deficits, how many will lose coverage or the increase in premiums by September 30.  Senator Bill Cassidy admitted “.”

3.             PRE-EXISTING CONDITION PREMIUM HIKES. The released a report showing how much more people with pre-existing conditions would pay each year under Graham-Cassidy. For example, an individual with asthma would face a premium surcharge of $4,340. The surcharge for pregnancy would be $17,320 and $142,650 more for patients with metastatic cancer.

4.             WORSE THAN BEFORE. found that this bill was “more disruptive for most states than prior Republican efforts.” The Washington Post found this bill is worse than previous health care repeal bills, writing “"The latest Obamacare overhaul bill gaining steam on Capitol Hill slashes health-care spending more deeply and would likely cover fewer people than a July bill that failed precisely because of such concerns."

5.             MORE UNINSURED VETS. study showing Republican repeal efforts would increase the number of uninsured veterans. The report showed that the ACA’s Medicaid expansion had increased coverage for low-income veterans who lived further from VA facilities. The report found that the ACA was responsible for reducing the uninsured rate of veterans by about one-third, from 9.1% to 5.8%, in 2015.

6.             MORE UNINSURED CHILDREN. The released an analysis showing that children are at immediate risk of losing coverage in Arizona, California, Connecticut, Hawaii, Idaho, Mississippi, Nevada, Oregon, Pennsylvania and Utah with CHIP funding running out quickly.

7.             KEY STAKEHOLDERS OPPOSE. The ,,, and and are all unified in opposing the Republican repeal bill.

8.             GOP GOVERNORS OPPOSE. Republican Governors from , , and have come out against the plan.

9.             FAILS THE MCCAIN TEST. The NYT's David Leonhardt's column, "."

10.          RAND PAUL IS A 'NO.' GOP Senator Rand Paul opposes Graham-Cassidy,, “In all ways, this bill is also ObamaCare Lite. In no way is it repeal the way we promised. I will oppose this bill as I did the other fake repeal bills, and I urge those who want repeal to do so, as well.“

11.          INCLUDES THE AGE TAX. This repeal bill still lets insurance companies charge up to 5 times more for people over 50, what AARP has dubbed an “Age Tax”.

12.          NO GUARANTEE IN THE HOUSE. eot "Would the House pass Graham-Cassidy? It's not a slam dunk."

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Hurricane Harvey continues to devastate many communities across Southeast Texas and Louisiana. ������Ƶ is making a donation to the . We encourage you to share this vital organization with others who might wish to help.