At last week’s hearing on the Department of Mental Health, Councilmember David Catania revealed the cost to house one person for one year at St. Elizabeths.

Guess how much?

About $280,000 per year.

“That is an enormous amount of money,” Catania said in what has to be the understatement of the day. There are so many reasons the money isn’t worth it. University Legal Services has found plenty of reasons.

Catania referred to these services at St. Es as “inferior” compared to a private facility and by paying these huge fees we’ve “cheated everybody.”