Norman — Mental health officials have shut down more than 120 inpatient beds in Norman facilities in response to their budget being slashed by $20 million since last July.
Former state lawmaker Cal Hobson said he also has learned that at least 100 state workers in Norman, caring for the mentally ill and drug addicted, have lost their jobs.
Even more cuts are possible, said state mental health commissioner Terri White, who confirmed the figures provided by Hobson.
“The Norman community is being hit with a double whammy,” White said.
She noted that there also is a waiting list of another 600 people statewide who are seeking treatment for their mental illnesses and drug addictions. The bulk of that treatment is provided by state entities in Norman.
Hobson and White agree that taxpayers will end up having to foot the bill for these people who resort to showing up at emergency rooms or often end up in jail and prison.
“We are pouring money into the consequences instead of treating people first,” White said.
For example, it costs $5,000 a year to maintain a person sentenced to drug court, while incarcerating that person costs about $19,000 annually.
Hobson said mental health department officials “have been beaten down to just take the cuts and don’t complain. They made their case but didn’t get very far.”
Hobson has been a longtime proponent of funding mental health services rather than pouring more money into corrections.
“The state’s approach is penny wise and pound foolish,” he said.
The Oklahoma Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services provides treatment to about 60,000 Oklahomans annually. Its annual budget is about $300 million with a third of it coming from the federal government.
Meanwhile, the governor and other state elected leaders have yet to work out a solution for mental health funding in the next state budget starting July 1.
State shortfall
Democratic Gov. Brad Henry and Republican House and Senate leaders are grappling with a projected shortfall of more than $1 billion in the entire state budget.
Hobson said the department already has trimmed 28 mental health beds provided at Griffin Memorial Hospital and instituted a “census cap” of 120 inpatient beds.
In another cost-cutting move, mental health officials have announced the “restructuring” of two state services provided in Norman, although some question if it is really a merger.
Being restructured are services provided by the Norman Alcohol and Drug Treatment Center and the Norman-based Children’s Recovery Center of Oklahoma.
An employee whose job was terminated in the merger said, “They will tell you these two have merged, but in reality the NADTC has been closed.”
The worker, who asked to remain anonymous, said, “They closed down our building and moved us all out. Griffin (Memorial Hospital) took over that building.”
State Rep. Wallace Collins, D-Norman, said he has accused officials of using “lawyer weasel words” which misrepresent what they are really doing with the NADTC.
White confirmed that this restructuring also means the elimination of 65 adult drug abuse treatment beds and about 35 children’s mental health beds in Norman.
The ex-employee said children diagnosed with both mental illness and drug addiction no longer will receive any treatment geared to their mental illness.
Collins said he does not think the mental health department is admitting any new clients to be served by either NADTC or the Oklahoma Children’s Recovery Center.
The legislator pointed to a state law that says Griffin Memorial Hospital and Norman Alcohol and Drug Treatment Center “shall be maintained for residents of the state.”
Collins said that is why mental health officials claim that the NADTC services will continue, but just in a different location where it will be housed under the same roof as the Oklahoma Children’s Recovery Center.
Meanwhile, the Democratic legislator who can see the Griffin Hospital grounds from his Norman home said he has suggested that the state House use a surplus of about $6 million in its own budget to shore up funding for the mental health department. But he has failed to get the attention of the Republican leadership in the House, while the Senate refuses to reveal any surpluses it might have in its budget.
However, House Speaker Chris Benge said Friday he considers Collins’ position on using surplus house money is “quite frankly … a purely political ploy.”
The speaker said the House leadership and also members do not want to cut much out of mental health funding. The reason, Benge said, is that they recognize it costs taxpayers more money if the mentally ill and drug addicted show up in emergency rooms or are arrested and incarcerated.
Benge said the reality of the next year’s budget is that the Legislature will have $850 million to plug a budget hole of about $1.2 billion, so across-the-board cuts of 10 percent are likely.
The $850 million would be about half in federal stimulus money that must be encumbered by Dec. 31.
Under the radar
Collins said there is another service that the department cut last July, which has gone largely unnoticed by the public. Mental health department officials closed what was called the Enhanced Residential Services program that housed 30 people.
The lawmaker said some of these people had jobs that they went to freely in the daytime and returned to Griffin at night.
“It was a very successful program where the mentally ill were housed at night in a state building but allowed to come and go in the daytime,” Collins said.
Commissioner White concurred that this was an outstanding program, but something had to go, to make up the shortfall.
Collins said he found out that one person who he said “was put out on the street,” ended up committing suicide.
The person first went to Jesus House in Oklahoma City, but eventually returned to the home where he had been abused.
“Then, this person committed suicide, which was the first casualty because of these cuts,” Collins said. “And there could be more.”
Hobson said if this population of seriously mentally ill adults and children are not receiving services, “these people don’t disappear or go away, but end up in emergency rooms, jails and prisons.”
Both Hobson and Collins said if the Legislature and governor really wanted to make mental health funding a priority, they could find the money in a projected state budget of about $6 billion.
