An Arkansas Legislative Council subcommittee on Tuesday approved a plan to spend $30 million in federal funds to improve mental health and substance abuse services the state through a variety of initiatives, including a statewide coordinated crisis response system.
The statewide crisis response system would include a 24-hour call center that will allow first responders to use tablets to connect people in crisis with clinicians; creation of mobile crisis teams; new training for EMT, police, and other first responders on telehealth, and patient evaluation; and software that will better connect health care and emergency response entities around the state.
The full committee will consider the proposal on Friday. The plan, which has the support of Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders and The Arkansas Department of Human Services, would be funded by the American Rescue Plan Act.
“The mental health and substance abuse crises in this country are layered,” Sanders said in a statement. “If we’re going to tackle them, our efforts will have to be layered too. I’m proud to announce Arkansas’ plan to address these issues head-on, including a statewide coordinated crisis response system. This will help us fill the gaps in our current efforts and ensure struggling Arkansans get the help they need.”
The plan also includes funding to support several initiatives that fill existing service gaps and improve quality for children and at-risk populations. In a news release, the governor’s office said those new resources provide better community-based services and support for people who would otherwise be sent to high-cost settings that would not necessarily be best to meet their specific needs.
The plan includes creation or enhancement of:
- Therapeutic community beds for adults with co-occurring mental illness and intellectual/development disabilities
- Community re-integration programs for children
- Youth substance abuse residential treatment programs
- Adult substance abuse residential treatment programs
- Supportive housing for adults with mental illness to help prevent homelessness, incarceration, and institutionalization
- Supportive housing to prevent homelessness, incarceration, and institutionalization for youth and young adults leaving state custody from foster care or the juvenile justice system
“It’s critical that resources are available to support Arkansans who are struggling with substance use disorders or mental illness, especially in times of crisis,” Arkansas DHS Secretary Kristi Putnam aid in a statement. “This plan invests in areas that can help prevent situations from escalating to crisis level, and also builds more of a continuum of care where we currently have gaps in support.”
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