CHARLESTON (AP) — After 60 days of dealmaking, compromise and defeat, the fate of West Virginia’s remaining health care legislation is now in the hands of Gov. Joe Manchin.

Without committing himself to definite actions, Manchin held out cautious praise for a measure advocates say is the most significant health bill of the session — a proposal to create a new office to oversee health care in the state.

Poor health is among West Virginia’s most severe problems. Ranking second nationally in obesity and cigarette smoking, the state spends about three-quarters of all health care dollars on chronic ailments such as diabetes and heart disease, according to Emory University expert Ken Thorpe, who helped design the proposal for a state coordinating office.

Meanwhile, the fate of another major bill is less certain. Mental health care providers lauded the passage of a measure that would boost reimbursements for some of their services, but it faces strong opposition from the state Department of Health and Human Resources.

Although the Legislature passed other health measures this session, the yield is modest despite an ambitious agenda for overhauling health care set forth in January. Significant parts of that agenda, including proposals to raise the tobacco tax and require chain restaurants to post calorie counts for customers, failed to win passage.

But lawmakers like Delegate Don Perdue, D-Wayne, chairman of the House health committee, said one of the bills now before Manchin was always the most important. The bill would create the Governor’s Office of Health Enhancement and Lifestyle Planning, or “Go Help,” which would coordinate state activities and oversee changes to West Virginia’s health care system.

The proposal also would establish pilot projects for “medical home” health care models in which a physician or clinic coordinates all aspects of a patient’s care. The idea behind the bill is to reduce duplication of efforts, encourage healthy behavior and trim the need for costly emergency medical treatment.

A range of advocates and interest groups have rallied behind the bill. Some Roman Catholic parishes in the state on Easter Sunday even got a copy of a letter to Manchin by Bishop Michael Bransfield urging the governor to back the Go Help bill.

“Knowing your own commitment to a healthy lifestyle and your vision of West Virginia as having a brighter future, I ask you to work to ensure the passage and enactment of the proposed legislation,” wrote Bransfield, who has been active on health issues.

Although he hasn’t definitively pledged to sign the measure, Manchin followed the bill’s progress in the session and likes what he sees. “It makes a lot of sense, and it could be a progressive change for the state,” he said.

While Manchin seems favorably inclined toward the “Go Help” bill, he’s more reserved about another significant measure that passed — a bill that would increase funding for 29 behavioral health services ranging from group therapy to crisis intervention.

The state health department strongly opposes the measure, saying it’s fiscally irresponsible and will favor large clinics over individual health care providers working in private practice.

“Some people have brought some of their concerns with that bill to my attention,” Manchin said.

He plans to meet with DHHR officials to discuss the bill, but hasn’t committed to either vetoing or signing it into law.

The criticism is off-base, according to Beth Welsh, director of quality assurance for the Prestera Center, which provides behavioral health care in eight counties.

Welsh said the bill is an opportunity for the behavioral centers and private practitioners alike to improve care by creating an ongoing discussion about the need for improving mental health care in the state.

“It’s an opportunity for both the behavioral health centers and private practitioners to expand,” she said. “We have definitely seen a decrease in the number of community services available to consumers, and this could have an impact in changing that.”