Title
Resolution to Authorize the Transfer of Six Properties and Contract from Washtenaw Community Health Organization to Washtenaw County
Memorandum
In 2000, the Washtenaw Community Health Organization (WCHO) was established as a separate legal entity, from a partnership between Washtenaw County and the University of Michigan. The original purpose of WCHO was to establish an integrated health care delivery system to provide mental health, substance abuse and primary and specialty health care to Medicaid, low income and indigent consumers.
In the summer of 2014, it became apparent that the community was facing a crisis in financing mental health services for publicly-funded consumers in Washtenaw County. After approving a budget for the County's Community Support and Treatment Services (CSTS), WCHO subsequently informed the County that there was a shortfall of several million dollars in funding. CSTS had been the principle provider of direct mental health consumer services in Washtenaw County via a contract with WCHO.
In response to funding shortfalls, and corresponding service delivery concerns, Washtenaw County and University of Michigan Health System established the Behavioral Health Task Force to evaluate issues, options, and implication of either maintaining or eliminating the partnership and the WCHO. Primarily, concerns were analyzed around perceived inefficiencies and ineffectiveness of WCHO, duplication of administration expenses between WCHO and CSTS, and evaluation of other models of service delivery. The Behavioral Health Task Force concluded that the WCHO partnership has not achieved the potential envisioned in its original purpose and goals, and recommended that the legal partnership be discontinued and WCHO dissolved.
To comply with the limited options for organizing such services in the State, the Task Force recommended that a Community Mental Health Agency model be established to provide mental health services for publicly-f...
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