California Governor Gavin Newsom enacted AB-531, earlier today. This significant mental health law intends address the demands on strained safety-net hospitals in Los Angeles County. Funded by the bill, the creation of 10,000 new behavioral treatment beds and supportive housing units aims to mitigate the severe deficit of subacute mental health beds in the state. This news was relayed in a Los Angeles County Health Services MEDIA RELEASE.
The state's largest safety-net hospital, Los Angeles General Medical Center, served as the location for the governor during the law's signing. The acute psychiatric facility, built to provide short-term stabilizing care for mental health patients, under ideal situations, promptly transfers patients to a subacute facility for prolonged care. Yet, due to the lack of these subacute psychiatric beds, patients have remained in the acute care facility for extended durations, sometimes even years, as they wait to be moved.
The Los Angeles County Department of Mental Health published a report in 2019 highlighting the shortage of mental health beds in the region. They pinpointed a shortage of 3,000 subacute mental health beds in Los Angeles County specifically. This shortage becomes further compounded when considering violent patients, as placement for these individuals is often more challenging, confirmed by the same press release.
Extended durations of stay and an absence of suitably therapeutic environments have resulted in increased utilization of restraints and secluded treatment of overly aggressive patients at LA General, posing threats to the safety of staff. LA General's rates for restraints and seclusions were recorded at 32.38 and 23.07, respectively, in 2020 – the highest in the state. Nevertheless, these rates normalize to the state's average for safety-net hospitals once a small demographic of actively violent patients awaiting transfers to lower levels of care are accounted for.
The Joint Commission praised the psychiatric facility at LA General as one of state's best, with it to soon benefit from the new law to better safeguard patients and staff tasked with managing such complex cases.
Jorge Orozco, Los Angeles General's CEO, expressed gratitude towards Governor Newsom for acknowledging and addressing this urgent issue by funding the creation of more mental health beds. Close behind, Dr. Brad Spellberg, Chief Medical Officer of Los Angeles General Medical Center, emphasizes the importance of AB-531 for both staff and patients often confined to the restrictive acute-care settings due to a dearth of suitable long-term care options. The bill aims to solve California’s mental health bed shortages, enhancing patient care and staff safety simultaneously.
Hilda Solis, the Los Angeles County Board Supervisor representing the district housing LA General, expressed her support for the governor’s mental health initiatives. She underscored the overlapping crises of homelessness, mental health, and substance misuse in the region. Solis echoed the importance of the Behavioral Health Infrastructure Bond Act, which would fund urgently needed projects, including the refurbishment of the Historic General Hospital and the erection of a Restorative Care Village.
