NATCHEZ, Miss. — Adams County officials continue to grapple with insufficient mental health services that are poorly funded by the state.
At a meeting Monday, Adams County supervisors and Sheriff Travis Patten discussed the problem that’s vexed them for years. Patten noted failures in Mississippi’s mental health system frequently result in local jails being burdened with people who should be in psychiatric facilities rather than behind bars. He said the state Legislature cut mental health care by $2 million this year.
Funding shortages and the lack of qualified mental-health professionals in recent years have resulted in poor services for people with a variety of needs, ranging from stress counseling to drug rehabilitation.
While local officials continue to struggle with the state’s systemic flaws, they are striving to make it better, said Adams County Chancery Clerk Brandi Lewis. She administers the process for a chancery judge to order someone to be sent to a behavioral health facility for evaluation or treatment. Lewis said she and others are meeting on a regular basis to review the most effective ways to address the mental health problems.
Mississippi has been the subject of a federal lawsuit filed by the U.S. Justice Department in 2016 alleging the state’s mental health system violates the Americans with Disabilities Act because it lacks sufficient community-based treatment for people with mental illnesses. However, the state Legislature has fallen short in providing the money for such services.
Mississippi has regional agencies that provide mental health services for the state’s 82 counties. Vicksburg-based River Ridge Behavioral Health serves Adams County and five other neighboring counties. Patten and Lewis are on the agency’s board of directors.
The agency relies on government funds and private dollars to pay for its services. Adams County in recent years has been annually providing about $77,000, but county officials say the state needs to allocate more funds.
Patten noted the state’s main mental hospital at Whitfield is often full and can’t take Adams County jail inmates in need of psychiatric care.
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