A state Senator from Fargo says he hopes the next Legislature will take a serious look at investing in behavioral health needs.
"Behavioral health problems are not going to go away," said Sen. Tim Mathern (D-Fargo). "The prison's going to continue to expand, if we don't make the investments early on."
Mathern says the prison system is where a number of people with behavioral health problems end up. He says they don’t get the treatment they need – and often end up back behind bars because of that.
Mathern says the Schulte (shul-tee) report – done in the 2013-2015 biennium – shows North Dakota needs to expand its treatment of behavioral health issues, such as addiction and mental illness. He says because of the state’s tight budget, it’ll take political will to fund those programs.
"I think we would have to do some changes in structure in the Department of Human Services," Mathern said. "We do some changes in investments. Maybe there's one part of government that has to go down, to move another part of government up."
Mathern also said lawmakers need to take a look at some trust funds and "rainy day" funds. And he says one place to find money is the Legacy Fund.
"Behavioral health needs have come to the level of awareness on the part of most decision-makers as being dramatic," Mathern said. "I think that calls for using the Legacy Fund as one of the options to address them."
