October 11, 2023 

Statement of County Behavioral Health Directors Association On Signing Of SB 43

Counties expressed concerns with SB 43 (Eggman) given that it will expand involuntary commitments to individuals with only a substance use disorder (SUD) and there is currently no model of treatment for involuntary SUD treatment. In addition, if anyone is determined to need a locked facility for SUD treatment, those do not currently exist in California. We continue to emphasize the need for policymakers to invest in more effective strategies such as easy access to comprehensive substance use disorder treatment and in expanding our capacity as a system to effectively treat individuals with severe needs at all levels.

California’s safety net for SUD treatment is significantly underfunded as a matter of decades’ worth of policies. It was only in the last six years that counties have been able to provide a more robust set of treatment options to individuals with Medi-Cal coverage, and that was under a special waiver, which was phased in and largely funded within existing county resources. These robust benefits are still not available in all counties, or to individuals with all insurance types. Even with these new benefits, longer-term residential and inpatient drug treatment mandated by courts will likely not be covered through insurance without policy changes. The Newsom administration’s historic investments in behavioral health have been essential in building a foundational bricks and mortar and workforce infrastructure for the changes we need to see in our state’s public safety net.

Implementation of SB 43 will require a renewed commitment from state lawmakers for services and treatment as courts will now be able to order conservatorships for indefinite periods of time. More importantly, this policy potentially puts individuals who are not seeking care, and for whom those treatment options are not proven to be effective, ahead of the thousands of Californians who are desperately seeking voluntary SUD treatment options on any given day. Our hope is that we can work with the Legislature and the Governor to build out our voluntary SUD treatment capacity to more effectively treat individuals with these devastating chronic health conditions.  

The County Behavioral Health Directors Association of California (CBHDA) is a nonprofit advocacy association representing the behavioral health directors from each of California’s 58 counties, as well as two cities (Berkeley and Tri-City).