True Advocacy for the
Mentally Ill and Disabled

I am a passionate advocate for services for the mentally ill, most importantly,  permanent supported housing, so they don’t sleep on the streets. I know for a fact that the mentally ill find themselves homeless because there are very few housing facilities that accommodate the mentally ill in the state of Florida. It is a sin that such a wealthy state does not have enough heart to help this population. I am very familiar with these difficulties because I have a younger sister, who is severely, mentally ill. I have been responsible for finding supportive living arrangements for her over the past ten years. Every organization that claims to help the mentally ill simply wants to bill Medicaid and Medicare for counseling and prescribing medication but they have no housing nor any network for supported housing. Where do she and all other mentally ill people go home to after the counseling session is over?

Florida’s  budget that went into effect on July 1, 2023, includes record funding for mental health services. The budget includes $2.5 billion in funding for mental health and substance abuse programs, with the bulk of it being a Medicaid rate increase for behavioral health, the first increase in 20 years, benefiting the state’s more than 5 million Medicaid recipients. “This will have an immediate impact on the Medicaid population to increase access and to ensure that there’s sustainability for the providers,” said Melanie Brown-Woofter, president and CEO of the Florida Behavioral Health Association. “So we are very, very excited to see that and that is a short-term and a long-term investment in the community.” However, the problem is the investment in spending is allocated to paying mental health counselors and medical providers but what about the mentally ill who can’t get a job and don’t have a place to live? The focus for the mentally ill should be first and foremost a safe, housing arrangement and if needed, a permanent supportive housing facility with rehabilitation and counseling programs integrated into the housing arrangements / facilities. The Florida Housing Finance Corporation recently established a program to fund permanent supported housing for the mentally ill and disabled populations. It is a pilot program to be operated in three different countries in Florida, none of which are in South Florida. I want to focus on extending the program to Miami Dade and Broward Counties, in tandem with other permanent housing for the mentally ill. I intend to see that the record allocation of funds by the state of Florida are used in a way that truly benefits the mentally ill and prevents their homelessness.

Jobs, Volunteer Positions and Supported Housing for the Disabled

As a mother of adult, twin sons with disabilities, I can say from experience that the lip service paid to opportunities and programs for the disabled throughout the state is just that, lip service only. After battling through the paperwork and complexities of these job and training programs for the disabled, in my view, the programs receive a failing grade. The public school system for the state of Florida does a good job of educating and accommodating the disabled due to the dictates of Federal law required for the schools to receive Federal funding. When the disabled are finished with high school, the state of Florida drops the ball. Disabled adults are capable of contributing to society in many different ways. Billions of dollars have gone to State agencies and private organizations charged with helping the disabled. They have layers of unresponsive, bloated bureaucracy. Phone calls and emails seeking assistance go answered. The funds allocated to job training, finding employment and volunteer positions for the disabled need to be annually audited for results and redirected, if need be, to more effective managers or newly created streamlined, efficient programs that meet the needs of the disabled. The Florida Housing Finance Corporation recently established a pilot program for permanent supported housing for the disabled and mentally ill to be located in three counties in Florida, which does not include South Florida. These types of programs must be expanded to Miami Dade and Broward Counties to meet the needs of the mentally and physically disabled who can not fend for themselves.