Day treatment program would be a first in area

A proposed county-run day treatment program could help up to 300 people annually who suffer from mental health or addiction issues, Ozaukee County supervisors were told last week.

“We already have a phenomenal team of clinicians in place and they are pretty darn excited,” Human Services Director Kim Falkner said.

The program would be the first of its kind in the county and the only one regionally outside of Milwaukee.

“There is no intermediate care in Ozaukee, Washington, Sheboygan or Manitowoc counties,” Falkner said. “I have not heard of anything like this except in Milwaukee.”

Intermediate care provides short-term, supportive services for people needing more help than they can get at home but not full hospital care.

“The goal is to help people gain resources and learn skills to help them grow,” she said.

The program would be housed in the county Administration Building in downtown Port Washington and be a major step forward in the continuing battle against substance use and mental health issues afflicting law enforcement, the courts, health services and residents, officials say.

Falkner and Emily Plahna, behavioral health manager with the Department of Human Services, would have a staff of seven, including a psychiatrist, case manager, behavioral health manager and an occupational therapist.

The county’s share of the staff would total $661,168 per year, not counting equipment, furniture and supplies.

Falkner and Plahna indicated they already have some staffing lined up and will have a medical director hired within three months once it is approved by the County Board, perhaps as early as March, and fully staffed a month or two after that and operational within two more months after that.

Clients would pay for services through Medicaid, Medicare or private insurance.

The start-up costs would be covered through funds secured by the county from a legal settlement with drug companies and retailers who, according to court documents, “flooded the market with highly addictive drugs claiming they were safe and efficacious for long-term use.”

The county receives $300,000 to $400,000 per year from the settlement and will receive about $3 million more through 2038.

Funds from the settlement must be used “to combat illegal drug use and their effects,” including mental illness.

Money from the settlement has already been used to pay for two “co-responder” teams in which specially trained Sheriff’s deputies and a county social worker respond to crisis events in which substance use or mental illness are factors.

The teams also operate proactively before crisis events occur.

The county currently has $1.8 million available.

Transportation is one of the key drawbacks to what is currently available as many people are wary of or unable to go to Milwaukee for services, Falkner said.

That would help make the Port Washington facility a regional draw.

“I think there are a lot of people who would be more interested in transporting to Ozaukee than to Milwaukee” from other nearby counties, Falkner said.

Plahna and Falkner said they expect to work cooperatively with the county jail, the courts and district attorney.

That includes working with the recently created deflection program, where drug cases follow an alternative route that includes treatment.

Officials expect the treatment center will help reduce incarcerations, emergency room visits and crisis events as it becomes better known.

Family therapy also would be available and the treatment center would work with nonprofits.

Creating the center will require approval from the County Board, likely in March, officials said.

Supervisors praised the proposal they heard.

“This is why we’re here,” Supr. Patrick Foy said. Foy is chairman of the Health and Human Services Committee.