SLO County supervisors did the right thing in approving Templeton psychiatric hospital

Each and every member of the San Luis Obispo County Board of Supervisors deserves a bouquet of common sense and compassion for voting in favor of the psychiatric hospital proposed for Templeton. The fact that both the Board of Supervisors and county Planning Commission unanimously approved the project sends a powerful message of support for increasing mental health services in our county.

Supervisor Frank Mecham was especially effective Tuesday in refuting opponents who objected to allowing out-of-county patients at a Templeton facility.

“I would take great offense if I needed to go to Stanford for open-heart surgery and was told we can’t take you because you are from Paso Robles,” Mecham said.

Exactly.

We’re impressed, too, by the project analysis performed by county staff. Not only did the staff report deftly refute flimsy arguments raised by project opponents, but it also pointed out that patients are legally protected from discrimination, which means a mental health facility must be treated the same as any other type of health care facility.

That’s what the Board of Supervisors did. Great job.

This story was originally published March 17, 2016 at 12:51 PM with the headline "SLO County supervisors did the right thing in approving Templeton psychiatric hospital."