Supervisor Deanna Alexander Advocates for Strengthening Existing Mental Health Resources to Support Suicide Prevention Efforts
MILWAUKEE – The Milwaukee County Board of Supervisors will be considering Resolution 25-117, aimed at advising the Mental Health Board to create new programming for suicide prevention efforts at their upcoming Board meeting. While all members of the committee reviewing and amending the proposal on Thursday expressed support for suicide prevention, Supervisor Deanna Alexander released the following statement recommending increasing efforts in existing mental health programming rather than continuing to create new projects:
“I care deeply about addressing mental health challenges and fully support suicide prevention efforts in our community. However, I cannot support this resolution at this time. Given the competing needs for programs that contribute to suicide prevention—such as strengthened crisis response teams—I believe taxpayer dollars are best allocated to initiatives we have already committed to, particularly those with measurable outcomes and proven effectiveness.
“For example, in my role as a special needs foster parent, my household once needed emergency mental health assistance for a child in crisis. Because the program was understaffed, my foster child could not receive the necessary and appropriate emergency mental healthcare response during the crisis. This is just one example of an area that I feel we are already committed to, that could directly help prevent suicide if well staffed and funded consistently year to year, rather than needing to compete with new stand-alone initiatives and programs.
“Milwaukee County faces numerous pressing priorities, and with limited resources, we must focus on initiatives that balance compassion and prevention with accountability for our existing investments. While I admire the passion behind this proposal, I encourage the Mental Health Board to pursue a broader strategy to address mental health challenges in ways that are impactful, measurable, and sustainable.”
NOTE: This press release was submitted to Urban Milwaukee and was not written by an Urban Milwaukee writer. While it is believed to be reliable, Urban Milwaukee does not guarantee its accuracy or completeness.
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