(Le Mars) — July 1st is only a few days away, and that begins a new fiscal year for the Sioux Rivers Regional Mental Health Services. The region consists of Sioux, Plymouth, and Woodbury Counties. However, Woodbury County Board of Supervisors have voted to leave the three-county regional mental health program, and instead join the Rolling Hills Mental Health program
consisting of eight different west-central Iowa Counties. Iowa law requires at least three counties need to comprise a regional mental health program.
The Iowa Department of Human Services has not yet given final approval to Woodbury County to leave the program. During the monthly meeting held Tuesday, officials were still uncertain as to what exactly would happened to the program at the start of the new fiscal year. Plymouth County Supervisor Don Kass serves on the regional mental health board. He says services will still be provided.
Keith Radig is a county supervisor with Woodbury County. He says after July 1st, Woodbury County will not be bound to the agreement terms.
Some mental health providers are concerned as to whether or not they will be reimbursed for services. Siouxland Mental Health says after July 1st, they won’t be able to provide the 24-hour mental health care which includes the staffing of a nurse. A proposal by Woodbury County was introduced to allocate $150,000 to Siouxland Mental Health as a way to continue the program. However, Plymouth and Sioux Counties voted against the proposal. Kass says the region is seeking alternatives to the perceived problem.
Kass says only one other mental health region, besides the Sioux Rivers, has a full-time mental health nursing staff. He says that involves Polk County, which involves Des Moines. Kass says there are not enough patients within the Sioux Rivers Mental Health Region to justify full-time nursing staff. Radig says the round the clock mental health nursing staff is needed. He says when a person is on the verge of committing suicide, you don’t want to turn those people away. Radig says he was disappointed in the vote that denied additional funding to Siouxland Mental Health.
Radig offers an explanation as to why Woodbury County wants to leave the Sioux Rivers Mental Health Region.
