Southeast Kansas Mental Health asks Linn County to restore prior $68,000 in support

Doug Wright, interim CEO of Southeast Kansas Health Center, told the Linn County Board of Commissioners the organization has reorganized to focus solely on mental health and substance‑use services and has made deep salary cuts to bring management pay in line with peer community health centers. Wright said the center separated from primary care and dental operations, implemented a structured repayment plan to the state and enacted a 12.5% across‑the‑board staff pay reduction to stabilize finances.

Wright asked the commission to consider restoring county funding to the prior level — about $68,000 — to help pay for indigent services and crisis work that are not fully covered by CCBHC or Medicaid. "With the changes we've made, we would ask that the commission consider restoring our funding to what it was ... which was about $68,000," Wright said. He added that the center provided approximately $171,000 in indigent services for Linn County over the past year (as shown in the materials he handed commissioners).

Commissioners asked whether county funds could be allocated for uses beyond indigent services; Wright and Amber Morrison (CFO) said county funds are typically used to offset non‑Medicaid costs (indigent crisis services and related supports) and that counties have discretion to discuss allocation, subject to federal/state funding rules.

Why it matters: Restoring county funding would directly offset care costs for residents who lack coverage and can affect county budget decisions. Commissioners did not make an immediate funding vote at this meeting; the request will reappear in budget discussions.

Next steps: Commissioners signaled follow-up questions and said they would continue the budget conversation in upcoming meetings.