Dozens of Mentally Ill in Jail Due to Lack of Hospital Beds

Maryland's health secretary says all of the state's in-patient facilities are full

Maryland officials say dozens of mentally ill people charged with crimes are stuck in jail, because Maryland's health department doesn't have beds or staff to treat new patients.

Maryland's health secretary says all of the state's in-patient facilities are full. Van Mitchell wrote to a Prince George's County judge in April that "our system has been consistently over census for the past year.''

Union officials are blaming the shortages on a cost-saving policy of pushing care for the mentally ill into the private sector, The Baltimore Sun reports

This week, a Baltimore lawyer went to court to block the health department from turning away would-be patients. Last week, 85 people referred by courts or jails were on waiting lists for five state mental health facilities.

Copyright AP - Associated Press
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