County to build mental health center in Watsonville with Alliance grant

Sept. 14--SANTA CRUZ -- Mental health services in Santa Cruz County will get a big boost from the Central California Alliance for Health, which has awarded $2.5 million to build a 33-space treatment facility in Watsonville.

It's part of $20 million awarded by the Alliance, a nonprofit Medi-Cal managed care health plan, to organizations in Santa Cruz, Monterey and Merced counties, to expand the pipeline for services needed by more than 350,000 residents -- nearly a third of the population -- enrolled in the state Medi-Cal program in the wake of the Affordable Care Act.

The goal is to "increase provider capacity" and "enable our health plan members to receive the broad scope of

services they need to heal and remain healthy," said Alan McKay, the Alliance CEO.

Medi-Cal enrollees are eligible for free health care, so rising numbers put new demands on the system.

In Santa Cruz County, 69,500 residents are enrolled in Medi-Cal as of Sept. 1, double from 34,000 six years ago.

Many more county residents have incomes low enough to qualify for Medi-Cal than those who bought health insurance through the state exchange Covered California.

As of March, 14,530 Santa Cruz County residents were covered by Covered California, with 87 percent getting subsidies to lower their premiums.

"The Affordable Care Act expanded the number of people with access to health care coverage, but it is up to the community to meet that promise with access to health care services," said Giang Nguyen, county health services agency director.

The new outpatient facility will be built on the county's Watsonville Health Center, 1430 Freedom Blvd., creating separate waiting areas for adults and juveniles and replacing an 11-space unit that is not big enough to keep up with the demand. The need was identified through a strategic planning process with stakeholders.

Rama Khalsa, who retired in 2011 as the county's health services director, applauded the Alliance grant to expand mental health services.

"Current space is outgrown and not well-designed for health activities," she said.

Erik Riera, director of county Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services, said the goal is to complete the new facility by the end of 2017, providing intake and crisis service for the first time in South County, including for those who speak only Spanish, and allowing an additional 8,000 clinic visits a year.

Timely access to care was among the priorities of the county's 2015 road map to mental wellness.

"We are in the beginning stages still and will be working with an architect on the preliminary design," said Riera,

who in April was recruiting to fill 10 open psychiatrist positions.

Late in August, he had obtained commitments for all but one position, with the new psychiatrists arriving over the next eight months, and a residency program soon to start with Stanford University.

Some grant funding will go to provide hardware and software to case managers, mobile clinicians and psychiatrists doing clinical work in the field, reducing paperwork.

The Alliance is also supporting the launch of the Nurse Family Partnership by funding three full-time nurses, equipment and technical assistance to mentor first-time mothers living in poverty, who may feel stressed-out and alone, and connect them with critical resources.

This research-based program was estimated to cost $857,000 for four nurses, with potential federal revenue of $323,000 so the county is still seeking additional funding for this program, with the goal to start in 2017 with 100 mothers.

$20 MILLION FOR HEALTH CARE

The Central California Alliance for Health, a nonprofit Medi-Cal managed care health plan serving 350,000 people in Santa Cruz, Monterey and Merced counties, awarded $20 million in the tri-county area to improve access to services, especially mental health and substance abuse treatment. Awards besides those to Santa Cruz County are:

--$250,000 each to Salud Para La Gente, Encompass Community Services and United Way of Santa Cruz County to improve access to services and increase coordination of care using technology such as telehealth and electronic health records.

--$2.5 million to the Merced County Mental Health Department to renovate the old county hospital into a behavioral health complex with a crisis residential unit.

--$2.5 million to Livingston Community Health to build a new health campus with a medical clinic, behavioral health and substance abuse services, and an optometry and dental facility.

--$2.5 million to Interim Inc., to build New Bridge House at Shelter Cove in Marina for transitional residential treatment for adults with serious mental illness and substance abuse.

--$2.5 million to Monterey County Health Department to build a new larger Seaside Family Health Center to expand access to primary care, behavioral health and dental services.

--$2.5 million to Mid-Peninsula Housing Corp. to develop permanent supportive housing in Salinas for Medi-Cal members who are homeless and have chronic conditions.

The grant funds accrued over 20 years of operations, according to the Alliance.

Information: Ccah-alliance.org/grantprogram.htm

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