Mental health clinic eyed for Eau Claire County Courthouse
One of the newest pushes in that direction is seen in county Administrator
"The clinic is targeted to reduce high-cost alternative placements and wait times for children, inmates and those currently served by institutional care," Schauf's budget states. "Stabilization of costs in this program area is crucial to future success."
Costs for temporary placements in treatment foster homes, private clinics and hospitals currently end up going to the county -- paid by local property taxes -- in situations where insurance or Medicaid don't pay.
The county's plan to curb those costs is to hire four people and create a clinic of its own.
"We're going to be certified as an outpatient clinic," human services director
Therapists would see people by appointment to address their mental health or substance abuse issues, she told members of the county's
The county expects that having its own outpatient clinic will allow it to trim bills it gets from outside institutions while getting revenue directly from Medicaid and private insurance reimbursements.
Cable said the clinic is intended for those in need of services provided through the county and is not meant to compete with the private sector.
"We are not in competition with the community clinics," she said, noting those are needed to serve the area's population.
Staffing for the county's clinic would be a full-time manager and three therapists. Salary and benefits for those four positions combined would be
The county's outpatient clinic will be in the
"This is not like a clinic down the street with a shingle out providing services," Cable said. "This is part of Human Services."
Staffing boost
The clinic is just part of increased staffing the 2018 proposed budget would provide to the
While most other county departments are remaining at the status quo, Human Services is growing by about 42 employees.
Twenty of the positions are coming from the county's
Seventeen of the new positions are tied to a broader transition the department is undergoing to provide more social services by county staff, instead of through contracts with outside providers, according to the proposed budget. Known as Comprehensive Community Services, the method of delivering services gets its funding from state Medicaid dollars.
"This transition allows us to obtain funding from sources other than property tax levy," Schauf's budget proposal states. "It is part of a long-term strategy to not only address the need in the community, but to do so in a fiscally sustainable way."
Changes proposed to how the department delivers its services were the results of months of meetings with Schauf.
"They've stepped forward with sound solutions," the county administrator said of
Tax impact
The 2018 county budget's proposed property tax increase, which is subject to ongoing state-imposed limits, is projected to have a small impact on the average homeowner.
The owner of a
The county was responsible for 17 percent of an
The county's
The full
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