Mental health levy set for ballot

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Written by By JAN LARSON Sentinel County Editor

Tuesday, 20 May 2008

Carter If only getting approval from Wood County voters were so easy. The Wood County Alcohol, Drug Addiction and Mental Health Services Board made its pitch this morning for a replacement levy to the county commissioners. They met no opposition. "Many people do not understand the ramifications of not having the funds to take care of these issues," said Wood County Commissioner Jim Carter. The 1-mill levy, for a 10-year period, would help fund local services for people with mental health or substance abuse problems. The services are successful and need to be continued, according to Larry Mershman, executive director of the ADAMHS Board. "Treatment does work and people are recovering in our system," he said. With the commissioners' approval, the 1-mill replacement levy will appear on the Nov. 4 ballot, and would generate an estimated $2.74 million - about $600,000 more than the existing levy. The board's two levies make up about 47 percent of its total revenues, with state and federal funding making up the remainder. The board then contracts for services with local agencies, such as Behavioral Connections, Children's Resource Center, Wood County Educational Service Center, Family and Child Abuse Prevention Center, NAMI of Wood County, and Family Service of Northwest Ohio. As Mershman presented the levy proposal to the commissioners, he was surrounded by agency representatives. Some of the ADAMHS board members were concerned that a 1-mill levy would not generate enough funds for growing needs. And Mershman explained that the levy will provide for constant, but not expanding services. The levy will fund "stability, but probably not growth," he said. Commissioner Tim Brown said that conservative approach was appreciated, considering the current economic climate. "I think that's important in this economy," Brown said. Mershman assured the commissioners that his board has set a goal of accountability. The focus is on assessing program results in terms of cost, quality and outcomes. "We will be very aggressive with that particular goal," he said. Surveys in the county have shown that local mental health and substance abuse programs have a far reach. Annually, the programs treat an estimated 2,847 clients with severe needs. Meanwhile, an estimated 31,000 Wood County residents are impacted in some way through services such as suicide prevention, crisis response, school-based programs, depression treatment and substance abuse programs. "One out of every four people in the county is benefitted," Mershman said. » No Comments There are no comments up to now. » Post Comment Only registered users can write a comment. Please login or register.

Last Updated ( Wednesday, 28 May 2008 )

 

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