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The Iowa Department of Human Services has recommended the state close the mental health institute in Mount Pleasant, according to a report issued to state lawmakers Monday morning.
The Mount Pleasant facility is the oldest of the four state-run facilities that serve individuals affected by mental illness. (Photo courtesy of the IAGenWeb Project.)
The legislature mandated that DHS recommend which of Iowa’s four mental health institutes should be closed without loss of services.
A 12-member task force, however, was also tasked with reviewing the four institutes. That report, which recommends that the state not close any facility until existing services can be maintained, isn’t expected to be released until late Monday.
“The quality of service at the [Mental Health Institute] in Mount Pleasant is beyond question and I want everyone to know that this recommendation is no reflection whatsoever on the dedication and expertise of our staff, which is outstanding,” said Charles Krogmeier, director of the Department of Human Services.
The department’s recommendation to close the Mount Pleasant facility, which shares its grounds with the medium-security Mount Pleasant Correctional Facility, appears to be primarily steeped in economic reasoning.
Krogmeier said he decided to recommend the closure that would cause the least economic fallout for staff and the community, the least disruption for families of patients, and the most opportunities for improving the mental health system. The exact impact on the state budget will depend on how legislators decide to close the facility, as well as how existing services are continued.
Ro Foege, who served as chairman of the task force, remains hopeful that some of the employees current in Mount Pleasant could continue their work within the correctional facility, which is not slated for closure. Mental health professionals in Mount Pleasant provide the only dual-diagnosis program — psychiatric and substance abuse — run by the state. Although substance abuse patients throughout the state come to Mount Pleasant for treatment, it’s primary service area is limited to 15 counties in southeast Iowa.
Krogmeier has indicated that such services could be moved to the mental health institute in Independence. Since the Mount Pleasant facility takes a wealth of cases from Polk and Linn counties, primarily through the correctional system, it remains unclear how much cost savings can be achieved in the realm of travel and time if such cases are moved to Independence in Buchanan County.
Both the DHS recommendation on closure and the task force were mandated by the legislature in May 2009.
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