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Pondera County awarded two‑year behavioral health grant; staff seek telehealth equipment and space
Summary
County health staff said a $250,000 two‑year behavioral health grant was awarded and that staff applied for a $15,000 equipment grant to establish community telehealth access; board discussed locations and sustainment concerns.
Pondera County health staff told the board on June 11 that the county received a $250,000 grant for behavioral health spanning two years and has applied for a separate $15,000 grant to purchase telehealth equipment.
Staff said the two‑year behavioral health award will help sustain near‑term initiatives and that Casey (health department staff) will take on grant responsibilities if the county’s contract with Alliance for Youth is not renewed; staff reported Alliance for Youth may stop providing services in September because of budget cuts.
The $15,000 application would fund telehealth hardware intended to give residents a private local space to connect with counselors. Staff said the package requested includes six virtual‑reality headsets and a laptop screen; the county would pilot a scheduling flow using an online form and an “easy text” notification program. Staff described a proposed platform partner, ManageXR, and said they had a planned meeting with Andre Balstrid (identified in the meeting as the ManageXR/Invinca Kids contact) to discuss the platform.
Board members discussed possible locations for a telehealth kiosk, emphasizing neutral, community‑accessible sites to avoid linking services to a single health system. Staff said the library was considered but lacked an available room; a hospital teleconference center was noted as technically able to host telehealth but might not be perceived as neutral by residents who do not use that hospital. The county will continue to look for low‑cost, neutral spaces and said any permanent site would have to be sustainable beyond the two‑year grant period.
Why it matters: The behavioral health grant and the telehealth equipment proposal aim to expand access to counseling in a rural county where travel and privacy concerns can limit the use of telehealth from home.
