The Four County ADAMhs Board approved funding to support several programs at its January 12 meeting.
The largest expenditure was $27,500 to help Maumee Valley Guidance Center purchase a new van that will be used to transport clients to area county fairs, shows, museums and more as part of the agency’s club house program.
Also approved were contracts with the Fulton County prosecutor’s office for $7,500 to help support school-based substance abuse and education programming and with Healthy Choices Caring Communities of Fulton County for $2,000 for their youth advisory council. The youth advisory council is active in the county’s school systems advocating for alcohol and other drug use reduction.
The board approved issuing 120 day notices to agencies that currently have contracts with the board. The notices, which are sent every year, inform all contract providers that their current contracts may be non-renewed or substantially changed for the fiscal year starting July 1, 2017.
In his report to the board, CEO Les McCaslin said that a grant application to establish an integrated behavioral and physical health center in Fulton County that would have been similar to those in Defiance and Williams counties was not approved. Therefore, the project with Health Partners of Western Ohio, which was dependent on grant funding, will not move forward.
However, McCaslin reported that A Renewed Mind, a northwest Ohio agency that primarily focuses on substance use disorders, will soon be opening an office in Defiance. The office, which will be located at the corner of East Second and Auglaize streets, will provide outpatient services for clients with any use or abuse problem, including opioid and alcohol use.
A Renewed Mind will provide office space in the facility for the Defiance County Drug-Free Coalition.
The agency currently operates Fresh Start, a men’s residential addiction program in Alvordton; coordinates clinical services for residents of Upton Heights Apartments in Defiance, operates a half-way house for young women with substance use disorders in Wauseon, and is building a men’s residential and outpatient substance use facility in Napoleon.
During his report, McCaslin noted that there is a lot of uncertainty about the future of the Affordable Care Act and the impact that its repeal could have. However, he told that board that if the Medicaid expansion, which was part of the act, is repealed without being replaced between 2,500 and 2,600 behavioral health clients now served by ADAMhs-funded agencies in the four county area would lose their health insurance. Those clients have received services costing at least $2.5 million a year that was paid by Medicaid.
The CEO also noted that the state will introduce more managed care elements to Medicaid’s behavioral health services starting July 1. He explained that this could result in some delays for clients to receive certain services.
John Nye from Liberty Center has re-joined the ADAMhs Board filling an unexpired term. He was appointed by the Ohio Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services.
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