Governor’s proposals would help Minnesotans get the care they need, while ensuring staff and public safety
Governor’s budget and Jobs Bill would invest $177.3 million in state facilities including the Anoka-Metro Regional Treatment Center and the Minnesota Security Hospital
ST. PAUL – Governor Mark Dayton today called on legislators to approve critical funding for Minnesota’s state hospitals and mental health facilities. These facilities are responsible for treating Minnesotans who represent a danger to themselves or others, but the facilities have been neglected for decades. Governor Dayton’s budget would reverse that trend, and work to better meet the needs of patients, while ensuring staff and public safety.
“The Anoka-Metro Regional Treatment Center and the Minnesota Security Hospital provide urgent care to Minnesotans with serious needs,” said Governor Dayton. “Decades of neglect have made these facilities more dangerous to both care providers and recipients. It is imperative that the Legislature correct some of these deficiencies this year.”
Governor Dayton has proposed a $177.3 million package in his budget and Jobs Bill to improve care and treatment across the state. The Governor’s proposal includes $30.3 million for the Anoka-Metro Regional Treatment Center and community psychiatric hospitals across Minnesota, to help the facilities hire additional nursing staff, improve the quality of care provided, and alleviate safety and security risks for all. And the Governor has proposed $22 million for the Minnesota Security Hospital, to provide for improved security systems, additional clinical and security staff, and the creation of a specialized unit to better serve people with developmental disabilities.
Governor Dayton’s Jobs Bill would invest an additional $70 million for the Security Hospital, to complete its renovation and improve staff and patient safety. An additional $55 million would fund investments to stabilize direct care and treatment services across the state. These improvements will help ensure that patients are cared for in a therapeutic environment, and that staff are safe in their workplace.
“Minnesota must provide our patients, staff, and the public with the highest level of care and safety,” said Human Services Commissioner Emily Piper. “This funding is essential to make improvements to our facilities, ensure adequate staffing, and help keep all Minnesotans safe and well cared-for.”
Additional Investments in Care and Safety
In addition to funding for the Anoka-Metro Regional Treatment Center and the Minnesota Security Hospital, Governor Dayton is proposing significant investments to help Minnesotans get the care they need, while ensuring staff and public safety.
- Community-Based Services – The Minnesota Department of Human Services operates 120 residential facilities across the state, which care for people with developmental disabilities and mental illness. Governor Dayton’s proposal would invest in services for these Minnesotans to keep vulnerable people in their homes with the care and support they need.
- Improvements to the Competency Restoration Program – When an individual is accused of committing a crime, but is deemed mentally unfit to stand trial, the State of Minnesota sends that person to a mental health facility to receive treatment before eventually standing trial. Today, many of these individuals are cared for in secure treatment centers, even though they could be served in a less-intensive setting. To free up hospital space for Minnesotans who need treatment in a secure setting, the Governor has proposed the creation of a new, stand-alone Competency Restoration Program to treat Minnesotans accused of a crime, but deemed incompetent to stand trial.
