Ventura County Approves Mental Health Spending Plan
The Ventura County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday voted to approve a spending plan for Proposition 63 funds, the Ventura County Star reports.
The plan would establish:
- A 12-bed residential treatment center;
- Programs in the Santa Clara River Valley and the Oxnard area to provide services to ethnic populations;
- In-home counseling programs for elderly residents (Wilson, Ventura County Star, 11/23);
- Expanded services for people with mental illnesses upon discharge from jail; and
- Subsidies for rent for as many as 140 county residents.
Linda Shulman, director of the county Behavioral Health Department, said that the first $6.7 million the county would receive would fund community-based programs for about 1,173 residents.
According to the Los Angeles Times, Ventura County could receive as much as $11 million annually under Proposition 63, which state voters approved in November 2004. To fund mental health services, the law increases the state income tax by 1% on residents whose annual incomes exceed $1 million (Saillant, Los Angeles Times, 11/23).
The plan now goes to the Department of Mental Health for consideration (Ventura County Star, 11/23). This is part of the California Healthline Daily Edition, a summary of health policy coverage from major news organizations. Sign up for an email subscription.