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Senate Human Services committee advances $16 million grant proposal to expand inpatient behavioral‑health beds in Bismarck
Summary
Committee voted 6‑0 to give House Bill 1468 a due‑pass recommendation and referred it to appropriations. The bill would provide $16 million to Saint Alexius Medical Center to retrofit an unused floor into a 48‑room behavioral‑health inpatient unit (net +30 beds); the hospital said it would assume operating costs.
House Bill 1468 would appropriate $16 million to the Department of Health and Human Services to fund a behavioral health facility grant intended to expand inpatient behavioral‑health capacity in central North Dakota. Representative Glenn Bosch told the Senate Human Services Committee the grant recipient must create 30 new inpatient behavioral‑health beds, operate the facility for ten years and submit documentation of adequate staffing plans.
Saint Alexius Medical Center officials told the committee the project is ‘‘shovel ready’’ because the hospital can retrofit an existing, unused fourth floor. Sister Nancy Miller, director of mission integration, said the hospital’s community health needs assessment identified behavioral health as the top need in the region and that youth rates of depression and suicidal ideation have risen. Rami Kudrna, Saint Alexius chief nursing officer, said preliminary demand estimates show an unmet need of 37 beds for central North Dakota and the retrofit would create 48 single rooms (a net increase of 30 beds). Kudrna said the requested $16 million would fund capital construction; Saint Alexius would assume start‑up and operational costs and has begun recruiting staff and psychiatrists.
Several witnesses — including the North Dakota Hospital Association, Dakota Boys and Girls Ranch and human‑service zone directors — supported the proposal as a step in expanding the state’s behavioral‑health continuum of care. Lawmakers discussed workforce and licensure issues and whether the project would overlap with State Hospital plans; Saint Alexius representatives said the project is complementary, with a focus on adolescent services and partnerships with the state hospital for adult forensic and geriatric care.
The committee voted to advance the bill. A motion for a due‑pass recommendation was moved by Senator Hogan and seconded by Senator Rohrs; the roll call recorded aye votes from Senators Lee, Weston, Arras, Hogan, Van Osteen and Clemens and the motion passed 6‑0. Senator Roars volunteered to carry the bill to the next stage.
Saint Alexius told the committee construction could begin in October and would take about 12 months, with a targeted opening in September 2026. The hospital said it plans to staff the unit using a mix of internal staff development, agency and international recruitment and telepsychiatry resources.
