The state of Washington has struck a deal with the feds to keep Western State Hospital open and funded. The Department of Social and Health Services announced late Thursday that it will negotiate a Systems Improvement Agreement with the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.
This means the troubled state mental hospital will no longer face a termination order and will maintain its federal funding. Western State has been under scrutiny for serious repeat violations that have put staff and safety at risk.
Earlier this month, two patients considered dangerous to the community escaped the facility. Governor Jay Inslee later fired the hospital’s CEO.
In a statement, DSHS says the agreement with the feds will allow for solutions rather than what it calls “Band-Aid fixes.”
