Legislators vote to restore funds for rural mental health clinics

CARSON CITY — State lawmakers have voted to restore funding for rural mental health clinics, keeping open nine clinics of the 11 that Gov. Jim Gibbons proposed to close.

The Senate-Assembly budget committee members previously decided to make the rural clinics a priority and stuck with that plan Tuesday.

Their decision would mean that the Dayton clinic, closed in September, would remain closed. People who got care in Dayton were redirected to a Carson City clinic. The clinic in Wendover also would close.

By adding nine clinics back into the budget, lawmakers must find about $1 million in additional revenue.

The panel also voted to approve the governor’s recommendation to eliminate some medication funding.

The Division of Mental Health and Developmental Services had requested to add back $300,000 in each of the coming two fiscal years to cover an additional 200 people needing medication, but the committee rejected the request after debate.

“I don’t want to ration medication for the seriously mentally ill,” said Assemblywoman Sheila Leslie, D-Reno. “It’s a public safety issue. If we don’t have the money for the medication, we’re looking at a potential disaster.”

Sen. Bill Raggio, R-Reno, suggested the division could request additional funding from the lawmakers’ Interim Finance Committee, which meets between regular legislative sessions, if it was needed.