- Lake County News reports
- Posted On
Partnership HealthPlan of California to disburse millions of dollars for behavioral health projects in Lake County
PHC, which administers Medi-Cal benefits for more than 590,000 members in 14 Northern California counties, will then disburse the funds to 30 grantee organizations within its provider network.
“We are proud and delighted that our providers have undertaken a broad array of innovative projects to improve care to our members,” CEO Elizabeth Gibboney said. “Especially during this time, when behavioral health needs have intensified, we welcome the ability to improve and extend the quality and quantity of our behavioral health services.”
Of the organizations to receive funds, Adventist Health Clear Lake will receive the largest amount, $11 million.
“We are very excited about this grant award,” Adventist spokesperson Laurie Allen told Lake County News.
Allen said the funding will be used to reduce disparities and increase access to behavioral health care for rural pediatric, adolescent and adult Medi-Cal patients in Lake, Mendocino and Napa counties by increasing mental health screenings, providing care navigation services, improving appointment times and availability, and expanding whole-person behavioral health services.
Sutter Health in Lake County will receive $418,552.
Bright Heart Health, which serves all 14 of PHC’s member counties, will receive $1,058,928.
The Behavioral Health Integration grants are funded with revenues from Proposition 56, a 2016 measure to support Medi-Cal through tobacco taxes.
The state Department of Health Care Services, or DHCS, announced the program in late 2019 as a way to incentivize improvement of physical and behavioral health outcomes, care delivery efficiency and patient experience.
PHC encouraged all eligible providers to apply, and 41 organizations – including clinics, hospitals, substance use providers, telehealth, counties, and mental health providers – submitted applications.
DHCS selected 30 organizations from that group and determined the funding amounts. The Behavioral Health Integration projects were scheduled to begin in April 2020, but due to the COVID-19 pandemic, DHCS delayed the start until January 2021.
The funded projects address the following categories: basic behavioral health integration; maternal access to mental health and substance use treatment; medication management for co-occurring chronic medical and behavioral diagnoses; diabetes screening and treatment for those with serious mental illness; improving follow-up after hospitalization for mental illness; and improving followup after emergency visits for behavioral health diagnoses.
Additionally, several providers will be part of a reallocation of funds available as a result of one grantee not accepting its award due to COVID-related priorities.