U.S. Senator Tina Smith (D-MN), along with Senators Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), and Maggie Hassan (D-NH) have introduced legislation into the 
The Mental Health Professionals Workforce Shortage Loan Repayment Act would forgive up to $250,000 in eligible student loans for mental health professionals who work in areas where there is a need. For others it would forgive one-sixth of the individual’s eligible loans for each year of service.
A statement issued by Senator Smith’s office said, nearly 160 million Americans live in areas with a shortage of mental health professionals. The Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) estimates that by 2025, there will be a shortage of over 250,000 mental health professionals, including psychiatrists, mental health and substance abuse social workers, clinical and school psychologists, and school counselors.
Smith said that this shortage is not felt equally across the country, and that rural communities are much more likely to have a shortage of mental health professionals than urban areas. People of color are also more likely to live in areas with a lack of mental health professionals, and they are much more likely to report challenges in accessing culturally competent care. The bill would address this by expanding the mental health care workforce in areas with the greatest need.
Smith, who serves as a member of the Senate Health Committee, said the bill addresses something with which she has personal experience. With the news that Senator John Fetterman (D-PA) has sought care for clinical depression, Smith wrote an op-ed piece last week, discussing her experiences with depression, and the importance of getting help, especially for young people.
“You know I when I was a young person, I had my own challenges with mental health and depression. And s like to speak very openly about that. I find that it’s great to talk about it openly with young people because there’s a very high level of experience with mental healthcare challenges, especially for young people.”
Smith said she and her colleagues do not expect this bill to stand alone, and rather they are hopeful it will be rolled into a larger piece of health-related legislation.
Jeff Johnson’s full conversation with Senator Tina Smith can be heard here
Federal grant not yet appropriated, city begins taking water treatment plant proposals
On Tuesday night, the Northfield City Council authorized the Public Works Department to solicit proposals from engineering firms to build
the city’s new drinking water treatment plant.
After receiving the results of a water study in 2021, the city decided to move forward on a new facility due to the elevated levels of manganese in the water supply. While the city’s water supply meets federal primary drinking water standards, the levels of Manganese exceed the EPA’s secondary standards. A high manganese level in drinking water has been found to be harmful to infants, as it can cause learning disabilities, notably attention deficit disorder.
City Utilities Manager Justin Wagner reviewed the plan for the council. The plant will be constructed to meet the city’s sustainable building design certification, which was established by the City Council last year. It will be built to fit into its surroundings, in accordance with the comprehensive plan, and as Wagner put it, it will be a “nice looking building.” It will also have high efficiency lighting and equipment, along with a green roof and solar panels. Additionally, the city will be working with its engineer to ensure the plant is carbon neutral.
The cost of the plant is estimated at $34 million, which includes design costs, new raw water mains throughout the city, and road construction for access to the plant. Late last year Northfield was informed that it had been approved for a federal grant that would cover 75% of the cost, or just over $25 million. However, it now seems that there are more hurdles to overcome before Northfield will receive that money. City Administrator Ben Martig said the money has been approved, but not appropriated.
“The project design is going to take quite a bit of time. It’s a major project, over $30 million. We did talk at the end of last year that we’re excited that we got some federal dollars approved. But we do have to go through the appropriation process, so it’s not guaranteed money at this point. There’s a long ways to go.”
Wagner said the city is working with Congresswoman Angie Craig’s office to get the money into President Biden’s budget proposal. He also said they are applying for Congressional Directed Spending in both the House and Senate.
The city will receive proposals over the next few weeks and will make a recommendation to approve an engineering firm at the April 18th council meeting.
New film promotes ‘trauma informed’ understanding
The Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee of the Northfield Rotary Club is sponsoring a screening of the documentary film, The Wisdom
of Trauma.
The movie is an examination of the groundbreaking work done by physician and psychotherapist Dr. Gabor Maté, who has included trauma therapy in the treatment he gives his patients who suffer from addiction.
Dr. Dorothee Ischler, who chairs the DEI Committee, is a therapist who has seen the movie and worked very hard to bring it to Northfield. She said society has seen a lot of trauma in the last few years. The Covid-19 pandemic has bred depression and anxiety throughout our communities, she said, and we need to start thinking about things differently.
Erika Staab, the Executive Director of the Hope Center in Faribault said, in fact, we need to be a more trauma informed society.
“What we would love to do is to have a more trauma informed community, which means instead of saying, ‘Why did you do that?’ you’ll say, ‘What happened?’ That is your response. And so, it’s really kind of a shift in how we approach things. It’s a shift in how we understand how we ourselves react and how other people react, and it just helps give ourselves grace, and other people grace. That helps begin the healing process.”
Ischler said everyone should see this film: parents, teachers, physicians, policymakers and legal personnel.
The Wisdom of Trauma will be screened tomorrow afternoon (Saturday, March 11th) at the Northfield Middle School. A panel discussion by professionals who work with trauma will follow the film, with time for a Q&A.
The movie will begin at 4pm. There is no charge to attend.
Jeff Johnson’s full conversation with Dr. Dorothee Ischler and Erica Staab can be heard here
Rich Larson is the KYMN News Director. Contact him at rich@kymnradio.net
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