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Hays County behavioral advisory team recommends 16‑bed diversion center model and hospital colocation
Summary
The Behavioral Advisory Team presented recommended bed counts, a hospital‑collocation strategy, and funding options for a mental‑health diversion center; law‑enforcement data showed roughly two emergency mental‑health detentions per day (2019–2024), supporting the need.
A multidisciplinary Hays County Behavioral Advisory Team (BAT) recommended on June 10 that the county pursue a mental‑health diversion center composed of an up‑to‑6‑bed extended observation unit (EOU) paired with approximately 10 crisis‑residential beds (16 beds total), and urged county leaders to prioritize colocating the center within or adjacent to a hospital or existing behavioral‑health facility.
Chief Stan Standridge (San Marcos Police Department), BAT co‑chair, told commissioners the advisory team’s charter (adopted 2023) lists the diversion center as the team’s top priority. The BAT discouraged a full crisis stabilization unit (CSU) — a more hospital‑like, highly regulated facility — because of higher construction and operating costs and heavier regulation. Instead, the group recommended the EOU + crisis residential model used in nearby counties and cautioned that facilities above about 16 beds would trigger more stringent state regulation and substantially higher staffing needs.
Matthew Gonzales, Hays County Health Department director, told the court colocating the diversion center with a hospital or behavioral‑health provider improves access to around‑the‑clock clinical care, enables shared infrastructure (pharmacy, emergency‑department access, IT and security) and lowers startup/ongoing costs. He said standalone centers distant from clinical infrastructure have struggled with utilization and staffing.
Sheriff Hippolito presented county law‑enforcement data to quantify demand: emergency detentions performed by county law enforcement were 884 in 2022 (about 2.4 per day), 794 in 2023 (≈2.1/day) and 795 in 2024 (≈2.1/day). The court heard that the local mental‑health court also uses emergency‑detention and protective‑custody tools; those dockets showed modest counts year‑to‑year but added to the overall system demand. Camie Matala, BAT co‑chair and court administrator for the mental‑health court, outlined funding paths the team is evaluating—state legislative appropriation routed through the local mental‑health authority (LMHA), local city and county contributions, foundations and donations—and emphasized the need for a strategic, staged approach to planning, development and sustainable operations.
BAT members asked commissioners to consider a pilot model similar to Comal County’s approach: a modest EOU (up to six beds) plus crisis‑residential beds and a plan to pursue state funding and hospital partnerships for long‑term sustainability.
No formal vote was required; commissioners praised the BAT’s data‑driven approach and assigned county representatives to continue planning and pursue potential state funding opportunities.
