More beds for civilly committed individuals would be afforded under bill

Improving capacity and access to treatment programs for civilly committed individuals with mental health and substance use disorders is at the heart of a comprehensive bill.

Sponsored by Rep. Heather Edelson (DFL-Edina), HF4366, as amended, is based on recommendations from the Task Force on Priority Admissions to State-Operated Treatment Programs.

The House Human Services Policy Committee approved the bill Wednesday and referred it to the House Public Safety Finance and Policy Committee.

“Not only are these patients not in appropriate care settings, but they often require significantly more care that can draw staff and other resources away from other patients in need of acute inpatient care,” wrote Joe Clubb, vice president of operations at Allina Health.

Civilly committed individuals in jails and hospitals face long waits for an opening at a substance abuse treatment facility. Mental health advocates say there is a shortage of treatment beds because Medicaid reimbursement rates for facilities are low, thereby limiting services. Waiting lists at follow-on care facilities are common.

“We have patients in our facility for 600, 700 days,” said Dr. Ian Heath, a forensic psychiatrist with Hennepin Healthcare. “Literally years is our length of stay for our patients. It is untenable.”

The bill would appropriate a yet-to-be-determined amount of funds in fiscal year 2025 to increase capacity and access to direct care and treatment services for all levels of care and allow the Department of Human Services to immediately admit to a hospital up to 10 civilly committed individuals who are on a waiting list.

The department would be able to prioritize capacity expansion within the Forensic Mental Health Program, the Anoka-Metro Regional Treatment Center, and community behavioral health hospitals. The forensic services program provides specialized mental health treatment to patients deemed by the state as mentally ill and dangerous.

The bill would also waive prisoners’ co-payment for their mental health medication while in a county correctional facility. The state would pay for the drugs or reimburse counties.