State Senator Rich Taylor (D-Mount Pleasant) said he could not believe what he was hearing when Iowa Governor Terry Branstad spoke to lawmakers about his proposed budget for the fiscal year that begins July 1.
"It was like the air went out of everyone," said Taylor. "It was like you just got hit in the stomach."
Taylor thought he was making progress in convincing the state to expand the Mount Pleasant Mental Health Institute to address a shortage of available beds statewide.
"All of the sudden, it blindsided me," said Taylor. "We were told MHI in Mount Pleasant would be closing June 30."
Taylor expects a fight over the decision to close the MHI's in Mount Pleasant and Clarinda, despite his belief that there is enough money in the budget to run them for another year.
"We'll be letting the governor know our displeasure with his decision."
He said that effort will include Democrats and Republicans, because he said the Governor did not even warn his fellow Republicans of his own plan.
Ryanne Wood is unsure if a lobbying effort will be enough to save the Mount Pleasant MHI from closure.
Wood heads the regional organization that oversees mental health dcare services in southeast Iowa.
She said because of that, she knows how important the facility is to the roughly 50 people who live there because of their need for constant, professional care.
Wood said, just as important, the MHI also provides extra beds, which counties can access when they have someone in need of immediate treatment.
"We are already in a shortfall for in-patient psychiatric care, beds within the state," said Wood. "And the closing of both of these MHI’s shrinks the number of beds available.”
Wood said the facility is also crucial because it is the only state-funded residential substance treatment program.
She expects some lobbying from organizations like hers, but she said more importantly, client assessments will get underway to determine the proper care for current residents in case the facility does close July 1.
