Bedford County approves full‑time treatment court coordinator after lengthy presentations

Bedford County commissioners voted on Feb. 10 to create a full‑time treatment court coordinator position, 35 hours per week at $22 an hour, after extended presentations and testimony arguing the role is necessary to sustain the county’s treatment court and expand toward state certification.

Judge Travis Livingood, who introduced the proposal, told the board: “A full time treatment court coordinator is essential and necessary to the functioning and existence of the Bedford County treatment court.” He said the coordinator handles participant screening, schedules team meetings, manages treatment and community‑service coordination, and performs mandated data reporting required for state certification through AOPC.

Supporters said the coordinator is central to day‑to‑day operations and to securing outside funding. Ben Naugle, the program’s case manager, said: “The coordinator is the person that holds all this together,” listing eligibility screening, data reporting, grant assistance and rapid case‑sensitive coordination among probation, treatment providers and the courts. Judge Livingood and others told commissioners that state certification would open grant opportunities — including reimbursement from the county’s opioid settlement funds — and that the board already has approval to seek reimbursement under the opioid settlement program.

Former participant Kyle Gardner, described in the presentation as the program’s first graduate, told commissioners the treatment court “changed my life, my children’s lives. Without it, I’d probably be in prison.” Clinical consultant Dr. Peggy Hoffman said she has worked in corrections and community programs and described treatment court as “the best thing we have to address substance use disorder,” emphasizing the staffing needs that make such programs effective.

Fiscal details discussed at the meeting included an initial county pay proposal of $22 per hour for a 35‑hour, nonunion position. Presenters said the county has approval to be reimbursed from the opioid settlement trust; speakers stated the current reimbursement level was set at about 60% and that 80% reimbursement was likely achievable depending on caseload composition. Judge Livingood and others presented arithmetic showing the position could be largely offset by such reimbursements — one estimate in the presentation reduced the county’s direct salary cost to roughly $4.50 per hour under an 80% reimbursement scenario — and suggested the coordinator could save the county money by reducing incarceration and child‑placement costs. Commissioners asked whether benefits would be included in reimbursement; presenters said that detail was not yet certain.

Commissioners discussed the program’s caseload and outcomes. Presenters said the treatment court serves about 10 participants and that graduates had remained longer in recovery than prior interventions. Supporters argued that the full‑time coordinator is required to maintain program fidelity, pursue state certification through AOPC and expand services (including a proposed mental health court).

After discussion, the board voted by voice on the motion to create the full‑time coordinator position; commissioners voting in favor were recorded as saying “Aye” and the motion carried, approving the position.

The board did not specify an immediate hire date in the meeting record. Commissioners and staff said they would continue to clarify reimbursement of benefits and program funding details after the vote.