State senators sent a strong signal to supporters of a psychiatric hospital proposal in Sussex County Thursday by passing a bill to override a pending appeal in the state’s court system blocking construction.
The $18 million, 90-bed facility proposed by SUN Behavioral Health would be built in Georgetown and was approved by state regulators last October.
But an appeal by Universal Health Services, which runs the state’s only two psychiatric hospitals in central and northern Delaware, has stalled the project.
Sponsoring Sen. Bethany Hall-Long (D-Middletown) says the bill is necessary to help increase access to mental health in Sussex County.
“This is levied so that we can do our jobs, which is to take care of Delawareans who suffer mental health and substance abuse – and provide for the first time ever in our state…much needed inpatient substance abuse treatment for teenagers,” Hall-Long said.
Once built, the facility would be Sussex County's first inpatient mental health facility, addressing a need state officials and activists have been discussing for years.
Sen. Brian Pettyjohn (R-Georgetown) says because of the dearth of available treatment, his constituents sometimes have to drive more than an hour to get the help they need, and some simply go without.
“Some of them don’t seek those services because they don’t want to be away from their support systems – from their family, from their friends, from the people that they need in order to help them through their treatment,” Pettyjohn said.
The bill now goes to the House for approval, though supporters say they’ll drop it should the court appeal be abandoned.
