Nebraska Governor Proposes Overhaul of Mental Health System

Gov. Mike Johanns (R) and officials from the University of Nebraska Medical Center and Creighton University Medical Center on Monday unveiled plans for a "Nebraska Center of Excellence in Behavior Health," as part of an overhaul of the state's mental health system proposed by Johanns and state Sen. Jim Jensen (R), the Omaha World-Herald reports (Reed/Stoddard, Omaha World-Herald, 12/16). According to Jensen, chair of the state Legislature's Committee on Health and Human Services, about 20 counties in Nebraska have only one mental health practitioner, and more than 20 others have none at all (Kaiser Daily Health Policy Report, 11/6). Johanns and Jensen have revealed plans to close regional mental health centers in Norfolk, Neb., and Hastings, Neb., in 2005 to save money for community-based mental health services, and they will present the state Legislature with further details and a bill to implement the changes in January. The Omaha-based center of excellence envisioned by Johanns and Jensen would help alleviate a shortage of crisis psychiatric care in the metropolitan area and "make Nebraska a national model in mental health care," according to a report by UNMC and CUMC, the World-Herald reports. The new center would serve as the primary training site for future behavioral health providers in the state. Construction and startup costs would be paid through private donations, and operational costs would be funded by the government, according to the World-Herald. UNMC and CUMC said they would provide staff for the facility but emphasized that "new and adequate resources" are required to keep it operational (Omaha World-Herald, 12/16).