Crowd protests proposed mental health cuts

Another point that was made at this meeting was that the proposed budget calls for a reduction of line staff (clinicians, counselors, and others that work directly with mental health clients) by 45% and administrative costs would only be cut by 15%. Lets keep in mind that the line staff are the individuals that bring revenue into the county and are the financial backbone of Butte County Behavioral Health. In a time of financial strain wouldn't it make sense to cut the non-revenue generating positions? With the proposed cuts that would leave a disproportionate amount of administration to line workers. My point is that the people at the top are taking care of each other and dismissing the mental health needs of our community.

Behavioral Health would obviously continue to be in fiscal unrest based on the state of California refusing to pay it's debt to the county. That being said, the impact of unpaid debt could have been far less if it had been dealt with from the beginning, two years ago. Pleas to the leadership team to perform checks and balances went unanswered. Cutting line staff is a temporary solution. Without thoughtful leadership this will be a constant problem. The Behavioral Health Board need to leave their perches at the front table and communicate with staff. The waste is obviouse, just ask. Cut the fraud and waste, not the staff that provide a valuable service to community.

The impact of these cuts stretch far beyond the mentally ill. Cuts in line staff will ultimately affect police, ambulance services, and emergency rooms. If the community only views this as cutting services to a few unfortunate, they are dreadfully wrong. Slowed response from law enforcement when you're in need, longer waits in an ER for your child. NAMI, local law enforcement, hospital administrators need to be all over this. The idea of reactive care needs to replaced by proactive care. Contact your supervisors. There must be an answer beyond bringing in an out of area, interim director, with no connection with our community to make cuts that do not appear well thought out.

Fact, 32 people at BCDBH make over $100,000 a year with salary and benefits. Fact, only 9 of these positions are direct service (ie. revenue generating) and the majority of those are psychiatrists. Fact, the Paradise Community Counseling Center made a request that the Assistant Director of Administration be let go when Ed Walker became the interim director. Do you really think that the closing of the Paradise Centers is for fiscal reasons? Fact is, it's retribution. The center in Gridley is closing in an attempt to make it look like it's not retribution. There are ways to cut money from the Behavioral Health Budget without making cuts to current services provided to clients. Patty Krause may claim she is a loose cannon, but to be honest she is a woman of integrity who knows what she is talking about. Citizens of Butte County, you need to recognize that cutting direct services in Behavioral Health is a death warrant. Daily, clinicians, counselors, nurses, psych techs, and psychiatrists provide services to people who suffer from mental illness. These services keep the community safe!!!! I urge anyone reading this forum to speak with their Board of Supervisors and beg, plead, etc. to not make cuts to direct services in Behavioral Health. There is another way to cover the $5 million deficit, but we have to unite in order for this to occur. Where else in Butte County can you make over $100,000.00 a year in salary and benefits than Behavioral Health???? This actually happened. Several of those 32 positions making over $100,000 a year are people who only have a high school diploma. Please, please write to your board of supervisors and let them know your concerns...your quality of life is counting on it. Nobody chooses to suffer from mental illness, just as nobody chooses to suffer from cancer, heart disease, etc.

Addition, I forgot to add to my comment, "Where else in Butte County can you make over a $100,000 a year in salary and benefits..." with a GED. There is a person in Behavioral Health hired into a supervisorial position with only a GED making that amount

There didn't appear to many supporters of previous director, Brad Luz, at the town hall meeting on Thursday. What the public didn't hear was that Dr. Luz, though at fault, was gone for most of 2007 with health issues and ailing family. Relieving Dr. Luz may have been a start, but removing Amy Wilner, the acting director at that time, would be a good encore. Allow her to keep her county paid masters degree at severance. As for the other two assistant Directors (adult and youth), I believe them to be solid humans who are decent and care about clients, community, and staff.

So today's the big day for another BCBH meeting. Their new proposed budget isn't much better and if they think they're gonna get the same level of service the current employees provide by contracting out, then they are dumber than I thought. Why is San Diego County bringing it's MH services back into the county, rather than sending them out for RFP's. And by the way, Ms. Wilner, if the state pays your high administrative salary why are clinician's and counselor's told they have to bill at 60% to cover overhead costs? Seems to me that I'm billing way more than what I get paid, so where the heck is all the money going? Hey, Idealist, Amy isn't the only one who got a free education at the taxpayers expense, Danelle Campbell and Dean True get to go to school too. Nice, huh!

Having worked for Danelle Campbell during the past 10 years it would have been amazing to see her fit in school with balancing the state and national award winning programs that she manages as well as being a leader in the national prevention movement and a mother. Danelle grew up in Butte County and brought her college education back to the community that she cares so much about. Her personal investment in ATOD prevention and millions of grant funds that her unit has recieved is to the taxpayers benefit, not expense. Before you throw things out there SOSIOUXME check your facts before you start discrediting the true grass-roots leaders in our community.

Siouxme, whats your point? You sound like your upset because people are making more money than you, and because some people received an education through a program that the county offers?(I'm assuming that the county offers educational reimbursement) If a person is doing an outstanding job, and is able to promote through the ranks, Why should you care what their level of education is? You come across as a bitter Betty. Having a degree in the Arts doesn't make you an Artist! Get a life!

Just for the record, I don't hold a degree in the arts. I do however hold a master's degree in a major that allows me to serve the severely mentally ill citizens of Butte County on a daily basis. I went into this field to help people, not to bring home a $100,000.00 plus salary and benefits package. Fact is I have no feelings of bitterness towards people who work hard and contribute to society, unfortunately working hard at the county level doesn't get you promoted, which I also don't have a problem with. I am all for grass roots organizations and the betterment of society. What I do have a problem with is the county paying for people to get degrees with taxpayer dollars so they can keep their high paid positions. I also have a problem with overpaid administrators who take away services from the neediest people in our community. Just for the record Seenthegood, the county doesn't offer an education program. In fact, the county doesn't offer much in the way of educational reimbursement, I believe the personnel rules state they will reimburse $500 a year (hardly enough to get a degree). I also have a problem with the favoritism that is shown to many people in BCBH, and the cover up that continues to occur again at the expense of clients not getting the services they need. I'm not a bitter Betty, just a concerned individual who wants to make sure mental health services continue in Butte County.

I appreciate the positive comments made about Danelle Campbell as she IS a person of integrity, whereas Patty Krause has been a trouble-maker and problem starting in Community Services for years. Funny how she can cry foul over the county budget when it more than likely affects her retirement, but did diddle with grant funds for additional services for the mentally ill. She CERTAINLY knows her way around a budget line item realignment!!! I have seen first hand the extent that Ms Krause has gone to malign not only Danelle Campbell but others at BCDBH and she actively employed her minions when they were not sprawled over a sofa watching QVC on County time and playing dodge or ditch the client... I certainly hope Ms Krause refrains from anything other than being the "loose cannon" she purports to be as launching scuds is more than familiar to her!

Anonymous was trying to address the issue but instead it turned into a personal thing. Can this forum please get back to the isses?

The truth is that Brad Luz was released from his duties because he failed as a leader and a vote of 'no confidence' from community doctors played a huge role in the decision. It is also a fact that the taxpayers of this county were lied to about his release.

Also the truth is that administrative costs are billed and reimbursed separately and do not 'cost' anything as long as total administrative costs are kept below the 15% that counties are reimbursed for these services.

Also true, whether services are contracted out or kept internaly, administration will be required and will be kept under the 15% the government allows, and, therefore, are not a drain on the budget.

Another truth, Brad Luz was gone a lot even before his illness and the person that was in charge must be held responsible. She was his right hand person and if left in place the status quo will remain. The new director will continue to be undermined so she can run things in an underhanded fashion. She must be watched line for line.

Fact, administration at Behavioral Health is not being honest still and if you compare the narrative to the budget lines you can see what I am referring to. Pay extra attention to the administrative analyst position that was left on the summary sheet as a layoff but is actually being put back in the budget for an HR person and the above mentioned fill-ins best friend.

It is also true that the new director and CEO may be good for this County but until they clean house they will be undermined and laughed at.

Fact is, when services are moved and doctors, nurses, and clinical staff change, the new recovery model that is touted by the state and behavioral health as the 'savior' for mentally ill clients, is greatly undermined.

Fact is, money has been spent, juggeled, and misused for years and someone needs to look much deeper into the way managers do this.

The managers, a party of 4 in the administrative office, should be looked at more closely and the clients needs should ALWAYS come first.

Please folks, back to the facts. Aren't they bad enough?

anonymous wrote:

Another point that was made at this meeting was that the proposed budget calls for a reduction of line staff (clinicians, counselors, and others that work directly with mental health clients) by 45% and administrative costs would only be cut by 15%. Lets keep in mind that the line staff are the individuals that bring revenue into the county and are the financial backbone of Butte County Behavioral Health. In a time of financial strain wouldn't it make sense to cut the non-revenue generating positions? With the proposed cuts that would leave a disproportionate amount of administration to line workers. My point is that the people at the top are taking care of each other and dismissing the mental health needs of our community.

I think this IS an issue that becomes personal when it affects the lives of individuals it serves. There has always been a disconnect between the spectrum of services offered and the services which mental health consumers actually need or benefit from. I can see where the "recovery model" has become a "savior" for the mental health consumer but the county is still heavily invested in its parental role of caretaker and finds little value in consumer-run programs or services. Community Services has a history of undermining any program that empowers its consumers towards self-help and recovery, preferring to advocate "best interest" instead of "expressed interest." The mindset that mental health consumers need to be medicated AND compliant is so out of touch with reality and until the county abandons or transitions from its entrenchment in that mindset real change cannot happen.