New Health System Leaves Some Story County Residents Without Services

Editor’s Note: This is the last in a series of three articles in Iowa Patch’s look at the state’s mental health system, its deficiencies and whether a spate of mass shootings should change the conversation.

A mental health delivery system redesigned to improve access across the state has already restricted access to some people in Story County.

A handful of Story County residents with mental health issues started going without county provided services that could help them maintain independence because the Iowa legislature has yet to determine how much and which counties should receive transition funding as the state moves toward regionalizing mental health services.

Deb Schildroth, Story County's community services director, said her office began cutting programs in July due to a funding gap.

The new system shifts responsibility for funding mental health care from county property taxpayers to Medicaid and creates regions to manage the system. The regions would also be responsible for funding services that Medicaid doesn't pay for and to fund individuals who are not Medicaid eligible yet. Transition funding was supposed to make up for shortfalls as the counties make the switch. However the legislature has yet to provide that funding or to determine whether it will fully fund the new system in the long term.

Story County applied for $2.5 million in transition funding but in some scenarios a total of $1.4 million could be given to just three counties for the transition, Schildroth said. And legislators are expected to work out the details of transition funding for the redesigned system in the coming weeks, until then the United Way of Story County is assisting where it can.

There is no waiting for outpatient care or medication, but Schildroth said the county had to stop assisting clients with legal aid for social security disability claims, in home respite care and job coaching. The community life program has also left some staff positions unfilled.

Schildroth said some good should come from the new system by sharing services and resources. But she said people need to understand that changing the system isn't as easy as flipping a switch.

“I just think that the Legislators and the Department of Human Services and people need to realize that the transition (will take) more than just one year. It's going to take several years,” Schildroth said.

Rep. Lisa Heddens, of Ames said, it's hard to say if the new system will improve access as hoped especially without funding in place.

It did define what core services each person should have access to regardless of where they lived and defined a number of core plus services that residents could have access to as well.

Heddens said she is in favor of fully funding the transition phase as well as the system in the longterm.

“If it's fully done and fully funded it will be a good system,” Heddens said.

Rep. Beth Wessel-Kroeschell and Sen. Herman Quirmbach were contacted for this story but could not be reached for comment.

Read Part 1 of the series: 

Read Part 2 of this series: Legislators Say $20 Million in Mental Health Funding Needed; DHS Says Only $1.5 Million Required