Officials, local residents talk DHS redesign

Iowans with mental illness or developmental disabilities, or a family member with those issues, are concerned about the state's redesign of services for them.

"It's a matter of life and death to us," said Bob Cihla of Cedar Rapids.

Cihla was one of about 100 local residents attending a public meeting Friday morning organized by the Department of Human Services to take public comment on the redesign, mandated by the Iowa Legislature. A second session runs through 3 p.m. at the Coralville Public Library.

The Legislature voted last winter to redesign the way mental health/developmentally disabled (MHDD) services are provided, shifting from a county-based to a regional system. It's the aim of DHS and county officials to streamline administrative and support functions while preserving services - or even improving them for rural counties.

"(Legislators) were able to come to a consensus fairly quick on what they feel the system would do," DHS Director Charles Palmer said during Friday morning's meeting. "The devil's in the details."

The legislation requires counties to form regional groups of at least three contiguous counties to manage and deliver services. Officials from Linn and Johnson counties have held an initial meeting and have invited Benton, Jones, Cedar, and Iowa to participate, said Mechelle Dhondt, Linn County director of MHDD services.

Six committees are developing reorganization plans for their specific populations. Those committees' reports will be delivered Oct. 1 to an interim legislative committee which will deliver recommendations to the Legislature when it convenes in January.

Linn and Johnson counties have a relatively full range of services that rural counties with smaller populations lack. Palmer said the goal is to improve rural counties' services while preserving those in larger counties.

"We have lived at the opposite end of the world from a lot of counties in the state," said Linn County Supervisor Linda Langston of Cedar Rapids, a member of one of the six working groups. "For us, it's handling (the question of) what do we want to give up? That's the reality in Linn and Johnson counties - services are going to be cut."

But Geoffrey Lauer, executive director of the Brain Injury Association of Iowa, said it's a matter of political will.

"If we convince ourselves there's just not enough resources to provide core services, then we won't ask for them," said Lauer. "It's up for us as Iowans to decide."

"We can choose where the money does the most good, bringing the most benefit to the community," said Delaine Petersen, executive director of Cedar Rapids-based Arc of East Central Iowa. "Continue to hold meetings like this, and I promise you the people in this room will help you solve the problem."