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Vigliotta | 1
Emilie Vigliotta
Ms. Fillman
ENGL 2
20 May 2019
Discussing the Funding of Long Term Mental Health Institutions
The Problem
During the age of imprisonment, through the nineteenth and earlytwentieth century,
individuals were sent away, living far from their home and families. Mental hospitals were the
primary source of care for mental illnesses, because it was the only option for treatment. Today,
although several different care options exist, state and federal governments continue to fund
longterm institutions (Mead). Although President Kennedy advocated for the transition to
communitybased treatment, leading to the closing of a majority of mental hospitals, these new
treatment centers weren’t provided with the necessary funding and resources to function
(Bolzeko). The proposal to bring back mental institutions is very current. President Trump
supported these sentiments, calling for additional hospitals to be opened. However, these
treatment centers are inefficient and expensive, and the conditions inside show that hospitals
have become the modern incarceration. Advocates for individuals with mental illnesses want the
longterm institutions to disappear completely (Carey).
State governments lack the necessary resources to fund longterm institutions, and mental
hospitals have shown to be inefficient and inadequate treatment centers. Given that various other
methods of community based treatment have been developed, allowing for easier access to
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6/13/2019 Critical Rough Draft 2 - Google Docs
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6/13/2019 Critical Rough Draft 2 - Google Docs
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