REPORT/RECOMMENDATION TO THE BOARD OF SUPERVISORS
OF SAN BERNARDINO COUNTY
AND RECORD OF ACTION
May 23, 2023
FROM
GEORGINA YOSHIOKA, Director, Department of Behavioral Health
SUBJECT
Title
Amendment to Contract with Amethyst Behavioral Health, LLC for Adult Residential Facilities with Social Rehabilitation Treatment Services
End
RECOMMENDATION(S)
Recommendation
Approve Amendment No. 1 to Contract No. 21-61, effective upon date of execution, with Amethyst Behavioral Health, LLC to provide adult residential facilities with social rehabilitation treatment services, increasing the daily bed rate by $35 from $325 to $360 and increasing the total contract amount by $169,680, from $4,855,500 to $5,025,180, with no change to the contract period of February 1, 2021 through June 30, 2024.
(Presenter: Georgina Yoshioka, Director, 252-5142)
Body
COUNTY AND CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER GOALS & OBJECTIVES
Provide for the Safety, Health and Social Service Needs of County Residents.
FINANCIAL IMPACT
This item does not impact Discretionary General Funding (Net County Cost). The recommended increase of $169,680 to the contract with Amethyst Behavioral Health, LLC (Amethyst) for the adult residential facilities with social rehabilitation treatment services is funded through the Federal Financial Participation Medi-Cal and Mental Health Services Act (MHSA) funding. Adequate appropriation and revenue have been included in the Department of Behavioral Health’s (DBH) 2022-23 budget and will be included in the 2023-24 recommended budget.
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
DBH is responsible for providing mental health and substance use disorder services to San Bernardino County (County) residents experiencing severe and persistent mental illness, substance use, and other addictions. Since 2016, DBH has utilized the adult residential facilities with the social rehabilitation model to provide services for adults experiencing a behavioral health condition who no longer meet medical necessity for an acute psychiatric hospital, or who have reached treatment goals in a locked psychiatric residential facility.
Treatment and assessment services provided by Amethyst include group and individual therapy, crisis intervention, case management, and coordinated care including transportation to any needed medical and psychiatric professionals outside of the facility. As consumers continue to progress in their recovery and begin to work towards the goal of living independently in the community, additional community-based activities, events, education, and other support services for daily living are incorporated into their service plan that will teach and enhance skills for independent living (i.e., proper medication regime, social skills, financial management/budgeting, and family reconciliation) in a less restrictive environment. Daily living services are designed to assist the consumer with achieving independence.
These residential treatment facilities are utilized as an initial consideration or a step down from the more costly acute psychiatric hospitalization or locked residential facilities and have access to long-term as well as transitional social rehabilitation treatment depending on the needs of the individual consumer. With this amendment, DBH anticipates that Amethyst will serve approximately 24 consumers annually at an estimated cost of $65,700 per consumer.
PROCUREMENT
On January 26, 2021 (Item No. 24), as a result of a formal procurement, the Board of Supervisors approved Contract No. 21-61 in the amount of $4,855,500 with Amethyst, for the period of February 1, 2021, through June 30, 2024.
Approval of this amendment will increase the daily bed rate from $325 to $360, due to inflation, increasing the total contract amount from $4,855,500 to $5,025,180, with no change to the contract period of February 1, 2021 through June 30, 2024.
DBH will monitor contract performance on a regular basis to ensure performance and compliance standards are met by reviewing monthly reports, conducting site visits to review consumer progress, as well as performing an annual program review. Invoices will be reviewed and approved by DBH Program staff to ensure clients and bed count are accurate prior to being forwarded to DBH Fiscal for payment processing. DBH Fiscal will verify signatures, bed rate, and total cost prior to submission for payment.
REVIEW BY OTHERS
This item has been reviewed by (Ellayna Hoatson, Contracts Supervisor, 388-0858) on April 18, 2023; County Counsel (Dawn Martin, Deputy County Counsel, 387-5455) on April 27, 2023; Finance (Christopher Lange, Administrative Analyst, 386-8393) on May 2, 2023; and County Finance and Administration (Cheryl Adams, Deputy Executive Officer, 388-0238) on May 7, 2023.