Bill > HB1131

This bill establishes an intensive mobile team pilot program within Hawaii's Department of Health designed to provide specialized mental health services to chronically houseless individuals suffering from serious brain disorders like schizophrenia and schizoaffective disorder. The program will create one mobile team in the community mental health center system, staffed by multiple professionals including a psychiatrist, social workers, a registered nurse, and a program specialist, with the goal of managing at least 40 participants. The team's responsibilities will include establishing participation criteria, providing after-hours crisis response, collaborating with hospitals and law enforcement, prioritizing housing placements, initiating psychiatric medication treatments, pursuing assisted community treatment orders, and continuing services even if a participant is hospitalized. The program will actively bill third-party payors and involve social work interns to expand service capacity. The Department of Health will collaborate with various stakeholders and must submit detailed reports to the legislature before the 2026 and 2027 legislative sessions, tracking metrics such as participant arrests, hospitalizations, housing placements, and medication initiation. The pilot program is set to run until June 30, 2028, and will be funded through state general revenues, with positions exempted from standard state hiring regulations.

Budget and Finance, Housing and Urban Affairs

https://www.capitol.hawaii.gov/session/measure_indiv.aspx?billtype=HB&billnumber=1131&year=2026