I remember the propaganda campaign of news stories about abuse in the mental institutions. There were also law suits taking advantage of the propagandized jury pool. There were all sorts of advocates pushing the idea that there would be small community mental health facilities replacing the larger hospitals. It didn’t happen.
Reagan was at the end point. The public was convinced and he bought the lie but he wasn’t the cause.
Reagan got fooled in supporting a lot of crap! He got fooled into amnesty, was a ferocious abortion lover as governor of California which helped expand countrywide, closing the mental institutions, raising social security age and first time taxing social security and a host of other stuff. Let me tell you that’s why he is not my favorite president. Trump by a mile.