HUNTSVILLE, Ala. — Alabama’s behavioral healthcare system begins an important transition this week, and WellStone is one of two community mental health centers in the state leading the way toward a new model of care.
Alabama is one of ten states selected for the Certified Community Behavioral Health Clinic (CCBHC) Medicaid Demonstration Program by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) in partnership with SAMHSA. WellStone (Madison County) joins AltaPointe Health (Mobile County) as one of the first two clinics in the state to be certified as a CCBHC and implement this transformative model of care.
"The big impact it has is on access to care," said CEO Jeremy Blair. "It gives us a mechanism to hire more staff and to be able to also kind of provide some services that we haven't been able to provide before in terms of expanding our care continuum and our wraparound services and enable to have individuals that reach out to those who maybe are suffering from mental health that help get them connected to better care."
The CCBHC model of care ensures access to 24/7 crisis care and accessibility to services regardless of ability to pay, and strengthens care coordination efforts with hospitals, law enforcement, and schools. With its implementation comes transformed behavioral healthcare systems – and transformed communities. "We understand and know that mental health crises don't happen Monday through Friday, 8 to 5," said Blair. "And so this model of care really gives us the ability to have a sustainable funding mechanism to be able to provide that care outside those traditional work hours."
With the expansion of services, comes the need for more staff which Blair shares that adding additional staff is a part of this new plan. "I definitely see this model helping you, helping us not only take care financially of the current staff, but hopefully as we continue to ramp up and add staff in, being able to pay market wages would be very important and help in our retaining and recruiting staff."
WellStone first received funding in 2022 to adopt the CCBHC model of care, leading to an expansion of services, including the addition of primary care, the implementation of a much-needed adult mobile crisis team in Huntsville, and more. With inclusion to the CCBHC Medicaid Demonstration Program comes new, sustainable funding to continue and expand these services and others, building upon WellStone’s robust continuum of care. According to the Alabama Department of Mental Health (ADMH),
“CCBHCs are providing an estimated three million people nationally with mental health and substance abuse treatment and care, with 79% of clinics serving more people after becoming a CCBHC, according to the 2024 CCBHC Impact Report. States that have successfully implemented the CCBHC Model are seeing improvements in 24/7 access to quality care, workforce capacity, and improved patient outcomes.”