Three behavioral-health providers present 2026 funding requests to Lincoln County commissioners

Southeastern Behavioral Health, LifeScape and the Link each presented program updates and funding requests to the Lincoln County Board of Commissioners on May 13; the board did not take funding votes during the meeting.

Southeastern Behavioral Health’s CEO, Tiffany Wolfing, asked the county for $65,161 (the amount calculated using the 2020 census) to support services in Lincoln County. Wolfing said Southeastern served roughly 700 county residents in 2024, recorded about 13,000 client contacts and logged roughly 7,887 service hours from Lincoln County clients. She described school-based counseling in 15 Lincoln County schools and cited outcome measures the agency reported internally, including a 67% reduction in emergency department visits for engaged clients and a reported 48% decrease in attempts to die by suicide among clients who remain in services.

LifeScape presented an overview of its services and a $55,000 funding request for 2026. A representative for LifeScape described a $94 million organization budget and said Medicaid accounts for about 82% of the organization’s revenue, with private pay and commercial insurance making up the remainder. The presenter said LifeScape serves adults and children statewide, operates adult residential group homes and specialty school and hospital services for children, and continues to manage wait lists across several programs.

A representative for the Link described its sobering, withdrawal‑management and crisis-stabilization programs and requested $30,000 from Lincoln County. The Link presenter said the program receives about $1.6 million of its roughly $2.2 million annual budget from four founding entities (each contributing about $400,000) and supplements revenue with insurance billing; the presenter said billing receipts total roughly $350,000 annually. Since opening in June 2021, the Link reported 13,118 triages and 3,676 medically managed detox episodes. The Link said 67% of people served identified as experiencing homelessness and that 56% self‑identified as Native American. County staff and commissioners noted that opioid-settlement funds have been used previously to help offset county support for similar programs.

Commissioners asked presenters about trends, sustainability and potential program consolidation. Panelists said methamphetamine-related presentations and complex behavioral health challenges remain significant concerns; they also described ongoing conversations among regional providers about possible service integration or other efficiencies. No formal county appropriations or commitments were approved at the meeting; commissioners and staff indicated the presentations will inform budget deliberations.