Quantcast
Channel: Carson City Nevada News - Carson Now - Your one stop for Carson City news
Viewing all articles
Browse latest Browse all 375973

Nevada Gov. Sandoval creates mental health council following bus ticket investigation

$
0
0

Nevada Gov. Brian Sandoval signed an executive order on Friday establishing the Governor’s Behavioral Health and Wellness Council.

The Council will examine ways of improving and strengthening the systems of support and delivery of services to those living with behavioral health conditions in Nevada, officials said Monday. An analysis of Nevada’s mental health system, which began in May, will also be evaluated by the council.

The establishment of this council is result of an investigation by the Sacramento Bee newspaper earlier this year that showed and documented 1,500 cases where mentally ill patients at the state's psychiatric hospital, Rawson-Neal, in Las Vegas were given one-way Greyhound bus tickets to California and other states over a five-year period.

“As we work to improve the delivery of mental health services in Nevada, we have spent the last few months analyzing our current system. There is a need to examine the relationships between state and local behavioral health providers, law enforcement agencies, and community partners,” Sandoval said. “This council, comprised of members of the Legislature, law enforcement officials, national experts, and providers of behavioral health services in Nevada among others, will assist in closing gaps in services and offer policy recommendations to help improve the quality of life for those individuals living with behavioral health conditions in our state.”

The creation of the council, for which the Department of Health and Human Services will provide administrative support, follows a recently completed DHHS analysis which provided recommendations to improve the delivery and availability of high-quality behavioral health services to individuals, their families, providers, communities and the state of Nevada, according to a news release.

“The HHS analysis further illustrated the need to determine the most effective use of resources to better serve the individuals living with behavioral health conditions in Nevada,” Sandoval said. “This Council provides our state the opportunity to help close these gaps in services and improve our current system.”

The council, which will submit a report to the Governor on or before May 31 and Dec. 31 of each year, will also be divided into regional subcommittees and be subject to open meeting law requirements.


Viewing all articles
Browse latest Browse all 375973

Trending Articles