JRAC chair Vanessa Phillips presses Daviess County Hospital and Green Door on behavioral‑health referrals as state psychiatric beds near capacity

At a March 11 meeting, the Daviess County Justice Reinvestment Advisory Council, presided over by Vanessa Phillips, pressed Daviess County Hospital (DCH) and local crisis services for clearer referral pathways after members said the status of a $45,000 opioid‑settlement program is unclear and state psychiatric beds are nearly full.

Vanessa Phillips said one of her 2026 goals is to strengthen relationships with direct‑service partners so community supervision and treatment providers have more reliable referral options. Shelby Stanley told the council that Dallas Rush from DCH had asked how the hospital could become a listed referral source on the prosecutor’s website but that follow‑up conversations had not yet occurred. Phillips also reported that DCH was awarded $45,000 in opioid settlement funds to implement an intensive outpatient program; the council recorded no update at the meeting on whether that program has launched or how the funds were deployed. Shelby added the program is contracted through Lake Behavioral and delivered online.

Phillips asked who would attend a follow‑up meeting with DCH; Abby Brown, Laura Petty and Michael Keith volunteered to participate. Keith noted he also serves on the Daviess County Hospital board. Phillips asked whether DCH would meet standards required by Probation and Community Corrections for accepting referrals; the meeting record shows no determination was reached and the group agreed to pursue a working meeting to clarify requirements and next steps.

Members also discussed the effect of constrained state psychiatric capacity. Phillips said a recent National Alliance on Mental Illness conference raised concerns about state hospitalization shifting practices when beds are scarce; she said that when state beds are unavailable, patients sometimes are returned to jail or released locally without receiving inpatient care. Derrick Devine described local practice as performing an evaluation and then immediately releasing patients; Phillips said that, in some cases, hospitalists evaluate patients and they may remain about 72 hours before being discharged when no state bed is available.

The council directed questions about on‑the‑ground crisis response to Michael Drake, who described Green Door as a voluntary crisis center that assesses people brought by first responders. Drake said Green Door staff will assess a person and, if the person is willing and does not pose imminent harm to themselves or others, they may be transported to the Green Door facility or the emergency department; first responders may bring willing individuals to Green Door as a designated drop‑off site. Drake said Green Door can initiate evaluations but has not routinely done so; if a patient is unwilling to be seen voluntarily, a judge would need to order an evaluation.

Dan Murrie announced that Phillips received the 2026 Change Agent in Mental Health Justice Award in recognition of her advocacy. The council approved the minutes from its January 14 meeting and later voted to adjourn. The group set its next meeting for May 13 at 4:30 p.m. at the Daviess County Security Center.