More cash for state mental health needs

Michael Ragland
Published: August 15, 2008

I recently read a piece in the Washington Post by Chris L. Jenkins entitled, “Va. Reviewing Overhaul of Mental Health System.” This comes in light of the high profile mentally ill Seung-Hui Cho who killed
32 students at Virginia Tech. Any significant changes accompanying the monitoring and commitment of the seriously mentally ill will need to result in the Republican Virginia General Assembly coughing
up cash for a new state mental health facility, enforcement of current laws and better training of mental health officials and professionals.

It has become “legendary” about the waiting lists that the mentally ill experience for simply trying to get into a psychiatric unit or to receive decent subsidized housing. Without correcting just those two
major problems, just an overhaul of existing mental health language for monitoring and commitment won’t be effective. In fact, it will drive the mentally ill away.

In the article, Bruce Cohen, an associate professor of psychiatric medicine at the University of Virginia, who sits on a task force of the Supreme Court commission has suggested, “changing the language
to ‘likelihood’ of danger “in the near future.” Reporter Jenkins remarks “there are concerns, however, that tinkering with the language in the law would lead to an undue expansion in the numbers of people
admitted to hospitals.”

Admit them where? Expansion to where? Without creating a new state mental health facility, there will be no place to put these seriously mentally ill people except in jail.

As a mentally ill person you learn, if you’re smart, to lie and tell the hospital you’re an imminent danger to yourself or others.

You still may need desperate treatment but this is how you get in.

MICHAEL RAGLAND

Triangle