WACO, Texas (FOX 44) – Waco City Council members receive an update on coordination between various mental health providers to ensure people in McLennan County with moderate to severe behavioral health issues are supported. We were scheduled to hear a request for further funding to enable us to receive the following: need.
Prosper Waco was to present on behalf of the Behavioral Health Leadership Team, which is seeking $200,000 in city funding. The group is seeking a total of just over $500,000 for one more year of operations.
Scheduled presentations will highlight how the United States faces a behavioral health crisis and the U.S. Surgeon General releases recommendations citing poor mental health, especially among children and adolescents, as an urgent public health crisis It presents an argument that it does. The presentation also noted that a recent Forbes study ranked Texas as having the worst mental health care among states. The presentation said the effects of this are felt throughout the community, from increased suffering for individuals to strain on law enforcement and hospitals.
The Leadership Team project, which brought together leaders from among those affected and those they serve, pointed out that these challenges can only be met by one agency or system. Stakeholders include the City of Waco, McLennan County, Baylor Scott & White Hillcrest, Ascension Providence, Heart of Texas Action Network, and Waco Family Medicine.
The group is seeking funding from the city, noting it has already received joint funding from these providers with a three-year commitment and the county with a one-year commitment. The county has already committed $200,000.
The goal outlined in the presentation is to ensure that all people in the county facing these challenges receive timely, high-quality care from qualified clinical professionals through interagency coordination. The overall goal was to reduce the pain and congestion of hospital emergencies. authorities, crises requiring law enforcement, and alternatives to incarceration.
