Image by Laura Faraci, ShutterstockLong ignored or blocked by local officials and confusing laws – while tacitly expected to provide care for severely mentally ill relatives – families are mobilizing in growing numbers, exerting major influence over state legislation and public policy, and protesting county resistance to strong new laws mandating intervention, care and treatment.
Sen. Susan Talamantes Eggman, Assemblymembers Kevin McCarty and Jay Obernolte. Image by Associated PressWidely regarded as the most knowledgeable and effective state legislator on mental health issues in the Legislature, Sen. Susan Talamantes Eggman (D-Stockton) is credited with major, bipartisan legislative accomplishments over nearly 12 years, first in the Assembly, now in the Senate, where she chairs the Senate Health Committee.
LETTER – Who benefits from the expanded use of conservatorships in California? Is it for-profit mental health and hospital systems Senator Eggman is trained in? Jurisdictions tired of their homeless problem?
Image by GrAI via shutterstockCAPITOL WEEKLY PODCAST: On this episode of Capitol Weekly, Rich Ehisen and Dan Morain welcome Sens. Susan Talamantes-Eggman and Roger Niello, two of the three primary sponsors on SB 43, a bill that would add new criteria to the definition of what constitutes someone being considered “gravely disabled,” the standard by which a person can be involuntarily held for treatment.
Susan Talamantes Eggman is congratulated in the Assembly following passage of her right-to-die measure. (Photo: AP/Rich Pedroncelli)Susan Talamantes Eggman was raised in Turlock, where her family owned a small almond orchard and apiary (bee-keeping), and her first job that wasn’t on the family farm started her on a path to working in health care and mental health throughout her life.
A troubled woman alone deals with issues alone. (Photo: Stokkete, via Shutterstock)A massive and highly critical state auditor’s report has given new life to legislation to deal with California’s notoriously troubled mental-health system. The shift comes as state lawmakers, convening amid the COVID-19 pandemic, face hundreds of bills in the closing days of the legislative session.