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Dayton Names Task Force On Mental Health

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) – Gov. Mark Dayton named on Wednesday the state's first ever Task Force on Mental Health, saying there's an urgent need to close loopholes in the mental health system.

The task force will take a look at what Dayton called an "alarming" rise in mental illness and a lack of services to deal with it.

The governor's office estimates 275,000 adults and children live with mental illness. Many of them don't have access to adequate mental health services.

On Tuesday, the human services commissioner toured the Metro Regional Psychiatric Hospital in Anoka, where criminals are transferred because there aren't enough jail beds.

Thomas Roy, the corrections commissioner, said many prison convicts in the state are mentally ill.

"Unfortunately, the solutions that have been promoted for many, many years for many of our mentally ill citizens has been the introduction of a cage and a key, and I can't imagine a worse solution to mental illness than a cage and a key."

The governor says many Minnesotans wait up to 10 years before seeking treatment. By that time, it's often a crisis.

Top state officials admit Minnesota's not equipped to deal with the mental health problem.

The task force will seek ways to fix and overhaul the system and report back to the governor's office in six months.

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