Douglas County approves $700,000 for Treatment and Recovery Center

Low insurance reimbursements drive TRC financial strain

Staffing shortages and overtime inflate crisis center costs

Final consultant report on TRC operations expected May 30

Officials to address Rockledge supportive housing project funding

HUD drastically reduces county homeless housing grant

Local tax dollars to cover federal housing grant shortfall

1. Douglas County approves $700,000 for Treatment and Recovery Center

DOUGLAS COUNTY, Kan. — The Douglas County Commission unanimously approved a $700,000 one-time supplemental funding request for the Bert Nash Community Mental Health Center to support its Treatment and Recovery Center. The facility initially anticipated a $1.25 million shortfall for 2026, but Bert Nash administrators reduced the request after lowering operating costs and identifying new program revenues. The approved funds will serve as a solvency measure to bridge the gap between the crisis center's operating expenses and its lower-than-expected fee-for-service collections.

2. Low insurance reimbursements drive TRC financial strain

DOUGLAS COUNTY, Kan. — A significant shortfall in billable revenue is driving the financial deficit at the Treatment and Recovery Center, according to a financial update provided to the commission. Bert Nash Community Mental Health Center Senior Director of Finance Dani Edwards reported the facility is collecting only 36 percent of its expected fee-for-service revenue, bringing in just $347,000 of an anticipated $950,000. County officials noted that between 40 percent and 47 percent of patients utilizing the crisis center are completely uninsured, leaving the county and the facility to absorb the high costs of uncompensated care.

3. Staffing shortages and overtime inflate crisis center costs

DOUGLAS COUNTY, Kan. — The Treatment and Recovery Center continues to struggle with high turnover and staffing shortages, forcing the facility to rely on expensive overtime to maintain mandatory safety ratios and shift coverage. The center is currently operating at 81 percent of its ideal full-time equivalent staffing capacity, and employee turnover remains high at nearly 60 percent. Bert Nash Community Mental Health Center CEO Kirsten Watkins noted the vacancy of a high-salary medical director position is heavily skewing the facility's budget variances, though overall agency turnover remains aligned with industry standards.

4. Final consultant report on TRC operations expected May 30

DOUGLAS COUNTY, Kan. — MultiPass Consulting, hired to evaluate the Treatment and Recovery Center's efficiency and clinical effectiveness, will release its final report on May 30. The review aims to determine how the crisis center fits into the county's broader continuum of care, incorporating interviews with emergency medical services, law enforcement and substance use disorder partners. County staff and Bert Nash Community Mental Health Center administrators say the upcoming recommendations will guide future operational improvements and inform the renegotiation of the center's operating contract later this year.

5. Officials to address Rockledge supportive housing project funding

DOUGLAS COUNTY, Kan. — Douglas County, the city of Lawrence and Bert Nash Community Mental Health Center officials are expected to discuss potential repayment options for funds previously allocated to the Rockledge project, a planned supportive housing development. While the exact amount remains undetermined, Bert Nash administrators have explored options to potentially remunerate local governments after stepping away from the housing project. The pending discussions aim to clarify how the agency will address the prior funding allocations while maintaining transparent accounting separate from its ongoing operational budgets.

6. HUD drastically reduces county homeless housing grant

DOUGLAS COUNTY, Kan. — The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development awarded Douglas County less than half of its requested funding for a permanent supportive housing program. The county applied for a $321,302 continuum of care renewal grant to support 12 chronically homeless individuals but received only $156,864. County staff noted that thanks to a federal lawsuit brought by the National Alliance to End Homelessness and other advocacy groups, the county can accept the reduced funds without being forced to comply with restrictions regarding gender identity policies that were originally tied to the grant.

7. Local tax dollars to cover federal housing grant shortfall

DOUGLAS COUNTY, Kan. — Douglas County will rely heavily on local tax dollars to prevent 12 chronically homeless Lawrence residents from losing their homes following the massive reduction in federal grant funding. The county will utilize previously authorized general fund and behavioral health sales tax revenues to backstop the $164,438 shortfall from the reduced U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development grant. The remaining federal funds are restricted solely to paying lease agreements, leaving the county entirely responsible for covering all associated supportive services and utility costs for the program's participants.

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