Wednesday, March 22, 2017


Advocacy and Knowledge Building Are Always Critical for Providers and other Stakeholders
Join NJAMHAA at its Annual Conference March 29-30, 2017 for Information, Insights & Inspiration

Now is the time to exercise your lungs and advocate against the repeal and replacement of the Affordable Care Act as loudly as you can. If the American Health Care Act is passed, hundreds of thousands of individuals will lose coverage, which for many, was recently gained as a result of the Medicaid expansion.

It is also a good time to take a breath and a refreshing break – while continuing to reinforce your effectiveness as a behavioral health provider and advocate. It is natural to feel overextended and stressed with so many important issues to focus on, so NJAMHAA has a solution: Attend our Annual Conference, Collaboration and Innovation: A Formula for Success, on March 29 and 30, 2017 to take a rejuvenating, yet still productive break from your highly demanding daily responsibilities.

The conference is not just something else to do. It is designed to make everything you do even better. You and the individuals you serve will benefit tremendously because you will not only get the latest updates from Washington in real time, but also will gain a wealth of information and insights that are timely and valuable for your ongoing work with individuals who depend on your services to achieve a high quality of life.

You will not want to miss:

* Working with a New Administration: In his keynote presentation on Day 1, Ron Manderscheid, PhD, Executive Director of the National Association of County Behavioral Health and Developmental Disability Directors, will provide his insights on the likely impact of changes to national policy, including the Affordable Care Act, Medicare and Medicaid. He will also share his perspective on the direction of healthcare policy for the near and long term, as well as guidelines for preparing for the coming changes.

* Five Pillars - The Pathway to Improving the Delivery of Mental Health Services in Education: An Interview with Amy Kennedy: In this plenary session, Amy Kennedy, MS, Education Director for the Kennedy Forum, will share findings from her research in early identification of and intervention for mental health concerns in children, the use of brain fitness and mindfulness within school systems in order to foster and improve mental wellness, and developing prevention programs that utilize and promote students’ social and emotional learning.

* Innovation in Behavioral Health Management, Reimbursement and Delivery: For the Day 2 keynote presentation, Brian Wheelan, MBA, Chief Strategy Officer and Executive Vice President at Beacon Health Options, will share the successes and challenges that have come from collaborations with provider organizations in both risk and non-risk based arrangements.

* The Changing Role of Hospitals: Leaders from Carrier Clinic, Hackensack, UMC Mountainside and the Camden Coalition of Healthcare Providers will discuss their successes from programs and changes they have implemented, as well as their current or planned efforts to better serve those with mental health and/or substance use disorders. They will also focus on the need for collaboration between hospitals and community-based providers.

* Plus: Workshops to meet every training need: Topics are organized by tracks – General Clinical/Adult Mental Health; Substance Use Disorders and Treatment; Children and Youth; and Organizational.

Get Even More Inspired at the Courage & Compassion Awards Reception

The best way to attract and retain staff is to make them feel valued. We all know of the amazing work that frontline providers and organizations’ leaders do every day and we are delighted to present Courage & Compassion Awards to several of them at our annual awards and networking reception.

Please join us to honor providers, as well as state legislators and media representatives who support the mental health, substance use and developmental disabilities systems.

Your participation in the reception is included in your Day 1 conference registration.

Click here to register now!