Get AI Briefings, Transcripts & Alerts on Local & National Government Meetings — Forever.
St. Croix County HHS highlights behavioral health investments and pending state policy changes
Summary
HHS leadership detailed regional behavioral-health investments and legislative proposals: a $10 million Rogers Behavioral Health campus grant, $10 million for crisis-care startup funding, an expected DHS RFP, and local restructuring plus grant applications to expand crisis and community violence interventions.
St. Croix County Health and Human Services leaders told the board they are positioning the county to take advantage of new regional behavioral-health resources while adapting local services.
HHS Director Bob reported that Rogers Behavioral Health received a one-time $10,000,000 legislative grant to build a campus in Eau Claire, with construction not expected until 2027. He said the legislature also allocated $10,000,000 to help start crisis care facilities intended to serve regional needs, and that a request for proposals from the Department of Health Services is expected early next year to award startup funding and negotiate Medicaid rates through the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services.
The director framed those developments as opportunities to reduce out‑of‑county referrals and to address county budget pressures tied to high-cost placements and emergency detentions. He noted federal and state work on an IMD (institutions for mental disease) waiver that could allow Medicaid reimbursement for facilities historically excluded when they exceed 16 beds.
Deputy Director and Behavioral Health Administrator Shara Lopez outlined an internal restructuring that combines supervisory positions to improve management oversight; she said services for consumers should remain unchanged. Lopez also described an application the department submitted — a joint community violence intervention and prevention grant with law enforcement — requesting $1,700,000 over four years to support crisis response, safety equipment, and related supports.
Director Bob added that the county secured a one-year, $100,000 matching award from Vital Strategies to expand a substance‑use professional working with families in child protective services; half of that award is available now, with the remainder contingent on quarterly reporting and evaluation activities by the public health division.
Board members asked for clarifications about how new regional capacity (Rogers campus and crisis care facilities) would change referral patterns and fiscal flows; the director said RFPs and negotiated Medicaid rates will determine provider participation and sustainability.
The board took no formal votes on policy during the discussion; members were updated on grant activity, internal reorganization and pending state-level actions affecting Medicaid coverage for justice-involved people and institutional funding.
Next steps: HHS staff will monitor the DHS RFP, the IMD waiver process and the outcome of the Vital Strategies reporting required to release the second half of the matching funds.
