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Region 5 Systems reports fewer county match dollars, expands crisis and housing services for Gage County residents
Summary
Region 5 Systems told Gage County supervisors on May 14 that it has trimmed its county-match request, opened a new adult voluntary crisis stabilization center and plans to expand emergency protective custody placement options via contracts with regional hospitals beginning July 1 if finalized.
Patrick Bridal, regional administrator for Region 5 Systems, presented the behavioral health authority’s annual report and fiscal update to the Gage County Board on May 14, saying the region reduced its county additional-match request by 38% and overall county match by about 8% for the coming year.
Bridal described services currently used by Gage County residents: 91 county activations of crisis response, 17 emergency protective custody (EPC) placements by law enforcement, 12 mental-health navigator activations and 10 constituents receiving rental assistance. He told supervisors an adult voluntary crisis stabilization center in Lincoln opened April 18 and is available to all counties in the region as an alternative to EPC placements.
Bridal said Region 5 is expanding emergency protective custody bed capacity through new contracts with several hospitals (including a planned contract with Lanning Hospital in Hastings for counties in the central/southern portion of the region and Fremont Methodist for counties in the north) so counties will have local EPC placement options beginning July 1 if contracts finalize. He described the pilot as a one-year trial to alleviate flow problems when crisis centers or hospitals become full.
Bridal also said the region received about $2.1 million in documentary-stamp-tax funds from the state to bolster housing supports for people experiencing homelessness and plans to increase HUD-style units in the service area. He framed investments as cost-saving, saying, “Every dollar that you spend on behavioral health, you are saving the the system $3,” and added a broader systems claim that investments reduce criminal-justice and hospital burdens.
The board voted to receive the Region 5 annual report and to approve the interlocal agreement between Gage County and Region 5; the record shows the motion to place the report on file passed 5-0 and the interlocal agreement was approved by unanimous vote.
Bridal suggested several operational steps for Gage County, including participation in sequential intercept mapping and coordination on a “stepping up” initiative to identify people in county jails who may need behavioral-health transition services. He said roughly 30% of people in jails present with mental-health or substance-use conditions and recommended local coordination to reduce recidivism.
What’s next: Region 5 will proceed with the planned hospital contracts and report back on pilot outcomes; county and region staff will coordinate on jail diversion/stepping-up efforts and housing-program rollouts.
