During his campaign, Gov. Bob Ferguson promised to spend a week working at Western State Hospital to better understand the challenges facing the state’s largest psychiatric facility.

Following a four-day stint at the facility in Lakewood, Pierce County, this week, where he talked to staff daily and toured the construction site for a new state hospital, Ferguson said a few things have become clear.

He’s encouraged by the state’s progress on major mental health goals, such as starting construction on a new hospital and reducing wait times for patients sitting in jail awaiting treatment.

But maintaining some of those gains, he warned at a Thursday news conference, will be a challenge amid the state’s budget crunch.

As he prepares to release his supplemental budget in the coming weeks, Fer

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