State of New Jersey
Executive Order #78

Acting Governor Richard J. Codey
WHEREAS, it has been the priority of my Administration to restore the traditional role of government by helping those citizens who need it the most; and

WHEREAS, throughout my years of public service and my tenure as Governor, I have strived to better the lives of those persons with mental illness and to improve New Jersey's mental health system; and

WHEREAS, consumers, family members, mental health providers and public health practitioners endorse a recovery-oriented mental health system which enables persons suffering from mental illness to live, work, learn and participate fully in their communities; and

WHEREAS, the recovery process enables a person to re-establish a sense of integrity and purpose and to live a satisfying, hopeful and contributory life, within the limitations of the illness; and

WHEREAS, the wellness process is a conscious, deliberate and ongoing process in which a person becomes aware of and makes choices towards a more satisfying lifestyle; and

WHEREAS, the public mental health system must continue to move from an institutional system of care to a community system of care based upon the principles of wellness and recovery;

NOW, THEREFORE, I, RICHARD J. CODEY, Governor of the State of New Jersey, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and by the Statutes of this State, do hereby ORDER and DIRECT:

  1. The financing of the State of New Jersey's mental health system should be changed to promote state-of-the-art treatment alternatives. These alternatives would include, but not be limited to, permanent supportive housing, supportive employment, in-home services and consumer self-help.

  2. The Department of Human Services (the Department) shall commence an immediate review of currently licensed partial-care and partial-hospitalization programs to determine the appropriateness of utilizing and funding, where appropriate, recovery-based programming and services. The Department shall also commence an immediate review of its existing regulations dealing with mental health services and programs for adults and children, with an eye towards revising those rules to allow for the shift to a system based on wellness and recovery. This shift should include staff training, mission, vision, treatment and recovery modalities, contracting and funding.

  3. The Department shall examine whether the State Medicaid Plan should adopt the Medicaid Rehabilitation Option, which would allow greater flexibility than currently exists to bill for non-facility-based services such as outreach, peer services, family education, supportive housing services, case management and social and recreational activities. This Option would provide more flexibility to meet consumers' needs by allowing services to be community-based rather than clinic-based, and would better maximize federal dollars, resulting in more financial resources.

  4. The Department of Labor and the Department of Human Services shall develop a cooperative training series for individuals with mental illness, family members and providers, in order to increase awareness and utilization of the Ticket to Work Program, to ensure that New Jersey is maximizing the benefits of this federal program and resources for individuals with mental illness and other disabilities.

  5. New Jersey should continue and expand its emphasis on evidence-based and/or promising practices, such as physical wellness and recovery programs now offered at the University of Medicine and Dentistry's Centers for Excellence.

  6. Performance and outcome measures are essential to the evaluation of treatment and value. The Division of Mental Health Services should move away from its current funding paradiegm, which is historical in nature, to one that pays for services based upon quality performance and measurable outcomes.

  7. This Order shall take effect immediately.

GIVEN, under my hand and seal this 13th day
of January, Two Thousand and Six, and of the
Independence of the United States, the Two
Hundred and Thirtieth.

/s/ Richard J. Codey

Governor