Many states handle treatment of those with mental illness and disability differently. The way things are done in Illinois isn't necessarily the way things are done in Iowa. That state is taking a look at how care for those afflicted with mental illness is administered, and weighing its options. Administrators and legislators have come to some interesting conclusions.

According to the Des Moines Register, an advisory board is recommending to Iowa legislators that the state's mental health services be pooled and coordinated by administrators who oversee at least three counties each.

As it is now, each county is responsible for mental health services. There are 99 counties in the state, and Polk County, home of Des Moines, likely handles things differently than rural and sparsely populated counties.

Still, the advisory board believes improvements can be made for the care of people with mental disabilities or illnesses. In particular, members of the board believe how the patients are doing can be tracked better, and children's programs can be better coordinated.

The Register reports that the panel is considering setting up five to 15 regions to pool counties' mental health money and resources. Each region would be overseen by a board and funded by property taxes and other programs.

Some argue that it's unbalanced if each participating county gets one seat, no matter the population. While that may cause some of the bigger counties to cut some resources, it would also beef up resources in smaller counties that are lacking some services.

What do you think? Could this new system be beneficial to those suffering from mental illness, and should other states adopt similar measures?

Source: Des Moines Register, "Regional setup advised for mental health services," Tony Leys, Oct. 26, 2011