KRMG has been digging into a funding cut from the State of Oklahoma for crisis intervention services in Tulsa.
On March 19th, Oklahoma Mental Health Commissioner Allie Friesen dispatched a letter to Family and Children’s Services notifying them of the termination of two contract lines.
Number one, amounting to $1,682,300, was allocated to the mental health organization’s COPES program. This initiative offers support and interventions for people experiencing mental health crises, including those with suicidal tendencies.
The second amount, totaling $895,000, was designated for the Crisis Care Center, which serves as the organization’s inpatient care unit.
The ODMHSAS correspondence notified FCS that the funds for those initiatives would cease on April 17th.
KRMG has communicated with the state agency, FCS, the City of Tulsa, and other entities to grasp the rationale behind the abrupt reduction and its potential effects on services.
Prior to KRMG being able to release this story featuring several of those insights, we got significant new information from the ODMHSAS.
The statement includes, in part, " The organization Family & Children’s Services encountered issues with two distinct contracts. It came to light that one of these contracts was incorrectly categorized within our internal systems; once this mistake was identified, we promptly reached out to the CEO at FCS to admit the oversight and work together toward an effective resolution. In regard to the second contract, which involved redundant services, measures have now been taken to integrate it into a single agreement operating under a fixed rate, ensuring ongoing financial support. Currently, efforts are being made alongside officials from the City of Tulsa to facilitate a seamless shift and necessary discussions during negotiations for the upcoming fiscal period. "
Later on Thursday, KRMG learned from Family and Children’s Services that CEO Adam Andreassen was notified at 5:30 PM that ODMHSAS had reinstated financing for COPES until the end of the fiscal year.
This came as an unexpected development, given that FCS mentioned they had been notified on March 27th that funds were unavailable for restoring either contractual position within the current fiscal year.
The City of Tulsa collaborates with FCS and COPES for the Alternative Response Teams , where paramedics team up with FCS-licensed mental health professionals to address mental health crises.
Laurel Roberts, the Tulsa Public Safety Commissioner, issued the following statement regarding that collaboration.
For many years, Family and Children Services (F&CS) has partnered with the city on various initiatives. As societal needs have evolved, F&CS has become essential to the city’s alternate response strategies, significantly enhancing mental health support in Tulsa while easing pressure off the City’s 9-1-1 system. This year alone, through their pilot initiative at the City’s 9-1-1 dispatch center, F&CS’s COPES program successfully redirected over 650 emergency calls. Additionally, F&CS plays a crucial role alongside the Tulsa Fire Department’s Alternative Response Teams and the Tulsa Police Department’s Community Response Team, contributing substantially to multiple programs throughout the city.
Considering this, the city officials have been engaged in talks with state representatives about the practical consequences of this financial shortfall for Tulsa. Should funds be withdrawn from these initiatives, it would hamper our capacity to adequately support Tulsans experiencing mental health emergencies and could potentially set back progress in Tulsa by many years, just as we cannot afford to reduce our commitment in this area.
KRMG will keep monitoring updates in this story.