Committee endorses in-person psychiatry contract with New Hope; will seek full-board approval

The LaSalle County Nursing Home NVAC committee voted July 14 to forward a proposed psychiatry services contract with a group called New Hope to the full board for final approval. Staff described the contract as providing in-person psychiatric visits to residents and said the group bills Medicaid, Medicare and private insurance directly so the county would not incur a direct cost. "It's no cost to us because they do all the billing," Kathy Bridal, committee chairman, said when introducing the proposed contract. Hanlon and committee members said New Hope would provide more frequent in-person coverage than the facility's current telehealth-only psychiatry arrangement; committee staff said New Hope could make weekly in-person visits and the group's lead psychiatrist would be available by phone 24/7. Carla Hanlon, the director of nursing, said the service would be available to residents regardless of payer type and that the facility would provide the group with a list of residents who could benefit from in-person psychiatric follow-up. She told the committee the group would coordinate appointments and that families could participate in visits when appropriate. Committee members voted to forward the New Hope contract to the full board for approval. The committee recorded no direct cost to the county in committee discussion, but members asked that the full board review the contract language so the county can confirm administrative and scheduling details before implementation. Staff said the proposed contract is annual and that the county could discontinue the relationship after a year if it did not meet needs.