In 2003, the President’s New Freedom Commission on Mental Health proposed a transformed mental health system that is both consumer-centered and recovery oriented (New Freedom Commission on Mental Health, 2003). To this end, Texas was one of seven (and eventually nine) states to be awarded a Mental Health Transformation – State Incentive Grant. To transform the mental health system in Texas, Via Hope was created to provide training and technical assistance for consumers, family members, and mental health providers.
The primary initiative of Via Hope was to develop a Peer Specialist Training and Certification Program. The first training class commenced in March 2010 and six classes have occurred as of October 2011. Certified Peer Specialists are not employed in a variety of settings across the state, including Local Mental Health Authorities (LMHAs), state hospitals, Consumer Operated Service Providers, among others (Brooks, Kaufman, Stevens-Manser, 2011). In order to generate revenue, some organizations bill Medicaid for reimbursement of peer-provided services. The intent of this evaluation was to gain an understanding of the extent to which LMHAs are utilizing peer specialists and billing for the services provided by this workforce. For organizations not employing peer specialists and/or not utilizing the Medicaid billing codes, researchers sought to examine the factors that hinder the provider from doing so.
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