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Chesterfield, Henrico among Community Services Boards getting funding to boost mental health services

Martinsville Bulletin - 5/2/2017

The Community Services Boards in Chesterfield and Henrico counties are among the first public mental health providers in the state getting a boost in funding to improve their services.

The Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services, which oversees the state's public mental health system, announced funding allocations Monday for eight Community Services Boards in Virginia.

The funds will help pay for so-called "same-day access," which allows people in need of mental health services to be screened the day they walk into a CSB for help instead of weeks down the road.

"Same-day access is the best lever to begin shifting care away from crisis response when individuals are more at risk to themselves and to others and towards preventative care when symptoms are more manageable," said Dr. Jack Barber, interim commissioner of the department. "Once all 40 CSBs have implemented same-day access using the same processes and tools, this program will be available to citizens consistently across every Virginia community and will be one of the most significant improvements for mental health services in Virginia's recent history."

The General Assembly set aside $4.9 million in the last session to pay for same-day access at 18 of the state's 40 CSBs.

The first eight, announced Monday, are:

Alleghany Highlands Community Services Board in Covington;

Blue Ridge Behavioral Healthcare in Roanoke;

Chesterfield Community Services Board in Chesterfield;

Harrisonburg Rockingham Community Services Board in Harrisonburg;

Henrico Area Mental Health and Developmental Services in Glen Allen;

Mount Rogers Community Services Board in Wytheville;

Rappahannock-Rapidan Community Services Board in Culpeper;

and Valley Community Services Board in Staunton.

These eight CSBs were chosen to be the first recipients of the funding because they have already implemented a version of same-day access or were in the process of setting it up.

A breakdown of how much money each CSB will receive and what the funds will pay for was not immediately available Monday.

Ten more CSBs will be selected for funding in the coming months, according to the department.