Anderson County Commissioners have withheld a payment of over $32,000 to the Southeast Kansas Mental Health Center as conflict and criticism of the six county regional center’s huge executive payroll continue.
The center, which serves Anderson, Linn, Allen, Woodson, Bourbon, and Neosho counties, has been under fire recently after information about salaries of hundreds of thousands of dollars paid to members of it’s management team surfaced. Their executive director receives $628,000 a year. Anderson County approved a contribution to the health center’s organization of $94,000 a year, but many county leaders have questioned their need for tax money if it can afford to pay huge salaries.
Anderson County Counselor James Campbell ,told commissioners that though they had approved the money, it doesn’t necessarily mean they have to provide it. The clinic has the largest billing of any of the 26 mental health centers in Kansas, at nearly $31 million, with most of its revenue coming from Medicaid.
