SMA Healthcare to open primary care clinic on Flagler County health department campus, expand services

SMA Healthcare representatives told the Flagler County Board of County Commissioners at a March 3 workshop that the agency will open a primary care practice co-located with the Flagler County Health Department and expand several services previously limited to other counties.

“We have been providing mental health and substance use treatment services to Flagler County since 1985,” Andrew Williams, vice president for SMA Healthcare in Flagler County, said in his opening remarks. SMA currently operates two Flagler County facilities in Bunnell (the Access Center on East Moody Boulevard and the Vince Carter Sanctuary on Justice Lane) and provides residential, outpatient, prevention and crisis services.

Why it matters: SMA’s primary care clinic on the health department campus aims to improve access to routine medical services for SMA clients and the wider community; staff emphasized sliding‑scale payment and patient assistance programs for uninsured or underinsured patients. The partnership is intended to simplify referrals between behavioral health, primary care and county public-health services.

What SMA described - New primary care co-location: SMA plans to provide primary care services at the Flagler County Health Department campus, offering preventative care, chronic‑disease management and first‑trimester prenatal services. SMA said the clinic will not turn away patients for inability to pay and will use a sliding fee scale: “Whether underinsured, uninsured, or have a co pay, we have a very, generous sliding scale and if somebody comes in and they can't pay their $10 co pay, say, we don't turn away,” Dr. Ferguson, SMA medical staff, said. - Pharmacy delivery and onsite pharmacy plans: SMA said it will open a pharmacy program at the Justice Lane site and operate a medication‑delivery service to address client transportation barriers; the county and SMA cited transportation constraints as a barrier to medication adherence. - Workforce and program growth: SMA reported that Flagler County services served roughly 2,700 clients this past year and currently employ about 70 local staff, a number SMA projected could double with the planned expansions. SMA also said the men’s integrated stabilization unit in the residential substance‑use program is slated to open in 2026 and could create about 69 positions. - Continuum of care: SMA described integrated offerings including medication‑assisted treatment, on‑site labs where feasible, case management and partnerships with local dental and OB‑GYN providers for services SMA does not offer internally.

Quotes and local coordination Steve Civelli, Flagler County Department of Health administrator, welcomed the co-location proposal and noted county health services serve a range of needs: “Roughly a little over 4,000 clients served within Flagler County for the clinical operations,” Civelli said when summarizing health‑department activity and capacity. SMA and the department said co-location would make it easier for clients to move between behavioral‑health and primary‑care appointments and to access dental and other community services.

No formal board action The presentation was informational. Commissioners thanked SMA and the health department and raised follow‑up questions about service scope and timeline; SMA said it hopes to open primary care at the health department before summer 2025. No formal vote or contract award was taken at the workshop.

Ending: SMA invited commissioners and county staff to tour SMA programs and said it will continue to coordinate with the county health department on implementation details and hiring timelines.