NABH Remembers Former Board Member Frank Fortunati, Jr., J.D., M.D.
NABH remembers with grateful appreciation Frank Fortunati, Jr., J.D., M.D., 58, who died March 5 after a protracted, courageous battle against prostate cancer.
A psychiatrist, attorney, and pharmacist, Fortunati had served as assistant professor of psychiatry and deputy chair for Yale-New Haven Health System. Since 2016, he was the vice chief and medical director of psychiatry and behavioral health for Yale-New Haven Hospital, where he was also active in the department’s COVID Healthcare Worker Support Task Force and Anti-racism Task Force.
Referred to as a true Renaissance Man, Fortunati was an accomplished musician who played saxophone, guitar, piano, and flute. His obituary noted that one of his great joys was performing with his friends and fellow psychiatrists in their band “Schedule II.” In the car, he enjoyed listening to jazz or classic Rock. He was also an avid gardener, spending hours growing and harvesting tomatoes, peppers, eggplants, grapes, and figs.
Fortunati served as a member of the NABH Board of Trustees from 2018-2020 and was also an engaged member of NABH’s Quality Committee, Workplace Violence Prevention Workgroup, and COVID-19 Task Force. His fellow board members and the Washington-based NABH team will remember how he always listened well and offered thoughtful, practical solutions to any topic—and proposed solutions that made life better for patients and the healthcare teams who cared for them.
“Fortunati led by example, often serving in multiple roles (vice chief, section head, inpatient medical director),” the Yale School of Medicine wrote in an
announcement about his death. “He earned the respect of everyone who worked with him. His credibility enabled him to drive change and improve quality. He put others ahead of his personal needs, repeatedly declining to complete the paperwork necessary for his own promotion in the service of looking out for others.”
Fortunati is survived by his wife, Karen; children Jenna and Frankie; other family members; and the Fortunati family’s three cherished dogs. Funeral services were held at Saint Mary Church (Precious Blood Parish) in Milford, Conn. on March 11.
NABH Raises Information System Limitations and Prior Authorization Concerns with CMS
NABH this week submitted
comments to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) about the agency’s electronic prior authorization
proposed rule as it pertains to behavioral healthcare patients and providers.
Under the direction of the NABH Managed Care Committee, the association raised concerns that the current limitations of the behavioral healthcare sector’s information system infrastructure are such that, without federal investment in compliant information technology to enable behavioral healthcare connectivity, most behavioral healthcare providers will remain shut out of 1) the interoperable exchange of patient health information, and 2) the electronic prior authorization processes that the rule proposes.
NABH’s letter also strongly supports modifying existing regulation to treat prior authorization approvals as a promise of payment that cannot be retracted, in addition to a determination of whether an item or service is medically necessary.
NABH Opposes Proposed FTC Ban on Non-Compete Clauses
In
comments submitted today, NABH asked the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to withdraw its proposed rule that would ban non-compete clauses.
NABH’s opposition to this proposal was based on three distinct concerns: the rule proposes an overly simplified, one-size-fits-all approach for
all employees across
all industries; given the workforce disruptions related to the COVID-19 pandemic, now is not the time to upend the healthcare labor markets; and, finally, the FTC lacks the statutory authority to promulgate this wide-reaching regulation.
Members of Congress Request Telehealth Parity Guidance from DOL
A bipartisan group of Members of Congress have sent a letter to the U.S. Labor Department (DOL) urging the department to provide guidance regarding parity enforcement for mental health and substance use disorder (SUD) services delivered via telehealth.
In the letter, House members expressed concern that health plans may be less motivated to cover behavioral healthcare telehealth services after the COVID-19 public health emergency is scheduled to end on May 11.
“Since the onset of the pandemic, telehealth use has risen dramatically, with 41% of MH/SUD care delivered via telehealth by October 2020,” the letter noted. “Mental health conditions continue to be the top claims diagnosis in the commercial market rising from 30% in January 2020 to roughly 65% in November 2022,” it continued. “Given the immense need for MH/SUD services combined with acute behavioral health workforce shortages, we want to ensure insurance plans and issuers understand their responsibility under federal parity law as it relates to behavioral health services delivered via telehealth.”
Click
here to read the full letter.
SAMHSA Announces National Strategy for Suicide Prevention Funding Opportunity
The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) this week announced it will grant five awards totaling $2 million to implement suicide prevention and intervention programs for adults that help implement the
2021 Surgeon General’s Call to Action to Implement the National Strategy for Suicide Prevention.
With an emphasis on older adults, adults in rural areas, and American Indian and Alaskan native adults, the program is meant to address the Call to Action’s broad-based public health approach to suicide prevention through enhancing collaboration among stakeholders such as county health departments, workplace settings, criminal justice setting, senior-serving organizations, and community firearm stakeholders.
Applications are due Monday, May 15. Click
here for more information.
Advertise in the 2023 NABH Exhibitor and Sponsor Guide!
NABH will distribute the
2023 NABH Exhibitor and Sponsor Guide to all registrants at the 2023 NABH Annual Meeting from June 12-14, 2023 at the Salamander Washington, DC. Be sure your organization is included in it!
All ads are due by April 21, 2023. Please click
here for details about advertising options, requirements, payment, and more.
The association also will send the guide to all NABH members after the meeting and post it on the NABH Annual Meeting webpage.
Registration is Open for the 2023 NABH Annual Meeting: Securing the Promise of Parity!
Please join us in Washington, DC from
June 12-14, 2023 for this year’s NABH Annual Meeting at the Salamander Washington, DC (formerly the Mandarin Oriental hotel).
NABH’s theme this year is
Securing the Promise of Parity, which recognizes the
Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act’s (MPAEA) 15
th anniversary and that we have more work to do to ensure the landmark law is implemented fully.
Please visit our Annual Meeting
homepage to register, reserve your hotel room, and view our Annual Meeting At-a-Glance.
We look forward to seeing you in Washington!
Reminder: Please Submit Data to Enhance NABH’s Managed-Care Advocacy Efforts
Thank you to all members who have submitted data to NABH’s denial-of-care portal. Your data will help NABH highlight problems in the field related to health plan denials and timeliness.
Several policymaking entities are interested in these data, which could support advocacy for expanded access to care. For new participants, please e-mail
Emily Wilkins, NABH’s administrative coordinator, for support.
Fact of the Week
Black and Hispanic adults with co-occurring disorders were less likely to receive mental health or substance use treatment (47% and 43%, respectively) than White adults (64%), according to
research from The Pew Charitable Trusts.
For questions or comments about this CEO Update, please contact Jessica Zigmond.