Washington, D.C. -- June 28, 2011 -- "The Bazelon Center for Mental Health Law applauds President Obama's call to build on the promise of Olmstead to end discrimination against people with mental illnesses and other disabilities," stated Dr. Robert Bernstein, executive director of the Bazelon Center, regarding the President's statements on June 22 marking the 12th anniversary of the Supreme Court's Olmstead decision. For the anniversary, the Bazelon Center has released a new paper http://www.bazelon.org/LinkClick.aspx?fileticket=HZT-J9kSCZk%3d&tabid=118

and a brochure http://www.bazelon.org/LinkClick.aspx?fileticket=4ct1F50BhGA%3d&tabid=118

describing the highlights of the U.S. Department of Justice's recent guidance on Olmstead. The guidance is part of a new DOJ resource online, Olmstead: Community Integration for Everyone.  

For more information on the Supreme Court's Olmstead decision and related matters, visit the Bazelon Center's Olmstead pages.

The Urban Justice Center and the National Alliance on Mental Illness of New York State have just published a guide for family and friends of people with mental illnesses who go to prison. The guide outlines services available for people with mental illnesses in prison, and describes how family members can advocate for the person in prison while getting support for themselves. It also details how to become active in larger advocacy efforts countering the criminalization of mental illness. The publication can be downloaded at: http://www.urbanjustice.org/pdf/publications/mhp_08sept10.pdf

The Parity Implementation Coalition, which is made up of Mental Health America and other organizations that worked to win passage of the federal Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act, has created a toolkit to aid individuals seeking recovery, their families, providers and advocates understand their new rights and benefits under the law. The toolkit is designed to be a resource on how to better communicate with plans, how to prepare and document information should disputes arise with a health plan over coverage or reimbursement, and how to better understand basic appeals rights and procedures. You can view the toolkit here.

How to Vote and Your Rights in the Voting Process

http://www.drcme.org/Handbooks.html