State Mental Health Policy: Another Chance to Do It Right: Redesigning Public Behavioral Health Care in New Mexico

Introduction by the column editor: This month, two columns on mental health reform in New Mexico discuss the transformation of stewardship for mental health in the state of New Mexico and illustrate that these changes are moving along in a direction recommended by the President's New Freedom Commission on Mental Health. Psychiatric Services will be following these innovative plans with great interest, and we thank the authors of these columns for sharing their perspectives with us. The first column is by Cathleen E. Willging, Ph.D., and Rafael M. Semansky, M.P.P., who shared their perspective on problems with Medicaid reform in New Mexico in an earlier column (1). Now they share lessons they have learned that can inform the new reform in the state. The second column is by Pamela S. Hyde, J.D., a longtime expert in mental health policy and administration who now serves as secretary of the Human Services Department in the Richardson administration in New Mexico (2). In her column she describes plans for transforming stewardship for mental health in the state. These two contributions exemplify what we have been trying to do in the State Mental Health Policy column for many years. They also mark the end of my tenure as column editor. Fred C. Osher, M.D., an expert in state mental health systems, will take over as column editor as I move into the role of Editor of Psychiatric Services. Dr. Osher has served as an advisor to me on many previous columns, and I know that he will oversee the column with skill and creativity.