HR1140

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HOUSE RESOLUTION


 
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    WHEREAS, Heritage Behavioral Health Center celebrated the 
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50th anniversary of its founding on March 28, 2006; and

 
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    WHEREAS, Heritage Behavioral Health Center, Inc., traces 
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its origin to March 1, 1956, when the Mental Health Clinic of 
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Macon County was founded by a group of area residents that had 
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formed the Macon County Mental Health Association in 1955; the 
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Mental Health Clinic accepted its first client on April 10 of 
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that year and has been providing continuous service since then; 
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and

 
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    WHEREAS, In 1967, the Alcoholism Advisory Council for the 
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Decatur Area was established to provide substance abuse 
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services; in 1970, the Mental Health Clinic became the Decatur 
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Mental Health Center and established an inter-locked 
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relationship with the Alcoholism Advisory Council; in 1987, the 
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Alcoholism Advisory Council was merged into Decatur Mental 
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Health Center (DMHC); DMHC continued its steady growth and 
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became the primary provider of community-based behavioral 
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health care in Macon County; in 1998, Decatur Mental Health 
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Center became Heritage Behavioral Health Center, Inc.; and

 
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    WHEREAS, Although the name and services have changed over 
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the course of its 50-year history, Heritage Behavioral Health 
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Center has stayed true to the principles upon which it was 
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founded, building a legacy of high quality, low-cost services 
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provided without regard to the recipient's ability to pay; 
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Heritage provides comprehensive community-based services to 
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treat the most serious behavioral disorders and links them 
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closely with providers of inpatient care; and
 
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    WHEREAS, The organization has evolved from just seven staff 
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serving 194 individuals in its initial 16 months with a budget 
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of $31,000, to the 25-year mark, where it had 75 employees with 
 


 






HR1140
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LRB094 20165 HSS 57957 r




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a $1.1 million budget that served over 2,000; and

 
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    WHEREAS, Today, 210 employees provide services to over 
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7,000 people annually with a budget of over $11 million; the 
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staff provides a wide variety of innovative outreach, crisis 
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intervention, and prevention services based in local schools 
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and communities; and

 
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    WHEREAS, In recent years, the center has received several 
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awards for its efforts in the mental health field, including 
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the Nicholas Davies Award; the Best Practices Award for 
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Documentation, Billing, and Coding from Health Ethics Trust; 
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and the Negley Chairman's Award for corporate compliance 
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efforts; therefore, be it

 
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    RESOLVED, BY THE  HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE 
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NINETY-FOURTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that 
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we recognize the 50th anniversary of the founding of what has 
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become the Heritage Behavioral Health Center in Decatur, and we 
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applaud the efforts of all involved with the valuable services 
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that the center provides; and be it further

 
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    RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be 
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presented to Heritage Behavioral Health Center as an expression 
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of our esteem and gratitude.