The plan, at least for now, is multifaceted, including finding new ways to treat those who suffer from behavioral health issues rather than holding them in jail.

“It costs about $23,000 a year for one bed in the jail, so if we can get a handle on the 40 to 60 people who continually go in and out of the jail simply because of mental health or substance abuse issues, we would be saving money on that end,” Rowland said. “In the long run, we’ll all save money.”

But money isn’t the impetus for the things the county wants to do to address mental health issues, rather it’s improving people’s lives.

Over the past year, several groups were formed to attack the issue from all sides, from opioid use to alcohol abuse to access to mental health treatment, not to mention the financial aid and private programs that are available to people while they struggle to right their lives.

One of the first ideas to come about, one that is to be implemented in the coming weeks, is the creation of two “navigation hubs,” one to direct people to treatment options and the other to show them what temporary aid they can get as they attempt to get themselves back on their feet.

Both are to be run out of the Mesa County Public Health and Human Services building at 510 29½ Road. Both are being funded from grants and donations.

“I keep hearing from people about the difficulty in getting access to mental health services and behavioral health services for either themselves or a family member,” Rowland said. “So I decided early last year to start a process that really assesses our whole system, and to find the gaps so we could fill them.”

That process began with a survey, which led to focus groups and finally a roundtable discussion.

From that, the hubs were one of the first ideas to come about.

“I continued to hear from people that (families and patients) don’t get calls back and don’t know where to go,” Rowland said. “One woman said they were given a list of 12 therapists to call. Of the three that even returned her call, two didn’t take her insurance and one didn’t have any openings.”

Rowland said that causes people to stop seeking help, which only escalates into incidents that lead to undesirable outcomes, such as jail.

The so-called Mental Health Navigation Hub is to consist of seven people, whose sole task is to “hold people’s hands” through the process of connecting them, successfully, with whatever treatment they need, Rowland said.

A separate group of people also are to be on hand in a soon-to-come Economic Mobility Hub, which will direct them to whatever financial aid they qualify for, such as food stamps or housing assistance.

“It will be a one-stop shop,” Rowland said.

BOLSTERING OTHER SERVICES

Other ideas the county’s new Community Mental Health Collaboration group is working on, and hopes to roll out this year or next, include expanding the Warrior Wellness Center at Central High School to other schools in the Grand Valley, helping mental health providers by offering third-party credentialing and billing services with insurance companies, developing a walk-in crisis care and detox facility, creating more telemedicine opportunities for mental health patients, and expanding Mind Springs’ assertive community treatment team.

But before those ideas come to fruition, the Mesa County Sheriff’s Office is working on improvements to the way it deals with law enforcement calls that really aren’t about law enforcement, but mental health.

While funding sources are still being worked out, a proposed Community-Based Case Management Program is being developed to reduce reliance on law enforcement and hospital emergency rooms for non-threatening mental health emergencies.

STATE HELP

The Colorado Legislature also is looking into ideas to help, including House Bill 1061, a measure that would allow for the releasing of defendants on bond who have been found to be not guilty by reason of insanity, but only in certain, and non-violent, cases that don’t result in felony convictions.

They would then be monitored by local human services departments until deemed healthy to be left on their own. The measure has already cleared the House Judiciary Committee.

Another measure, Senate Bill 106, would call on the Colorado departments of Human Services and Health Care Policy and Financing to require managed care entities, administrative services organizations and managed service organizations that have a 25% or more provider ownership to comply with specific conflict of interest policies.

It is one of the measures being pushed by Mental Health Colorado, which says it would increase transparency and accountability among public behavioral health care systems that receive state money.

Rep. Janice Rich, R-Grand Junction, is one of the bill’s sponsors.

“Currently, mental health centers own some of the payer systems, control provider networks, service delivery and related decisions,” Rich said. “This is akin to the fox guarding the hen house. There should be a competitive procurement for these payer systems contracts.”

Mental Health Colorado also is pushing for other changes, including HB1065 that would make it easier to hold potentially dangerous mental health patients for up to 72 hours to get them emergency treatment. The Legislature has attempted to make changes to such holds, but continue to run into civil liberty issues when it comes to involuntary holds.

The group also is pushing to divert about $450 million in funding the state received from the American Rescue Plan passed by Congress last year to deal with the pandemic toward behavioral health services.

Numerous other measures are working their way through the Legislature, too, including bills to improve the state’s behavioral health crisis response system, helping people suffering with mental health issues navigate the judicial system, and offering pretrial diversion programs for people who have behavioral health disorders.

“We need to prioritize our mental health in Colorado, stop waiting until people are in crisis before intervening, end the criminalization of mental health and implement statewide changes so that all Coloradans have an equitable chance for happy, healthy life,” said Vincent Atchity, president and CEO of Mental Health Colorado.