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The Health First Kosciusko Advisory Committee has again postponed a decision on funding a proposed clubhouse for people with mental health needs due to money concerns.
At its meeting on Wednesday, the committee heard an update from Chris Fancil, who's helping lead the Kosciusko County Clubhouse project.
Fancil first appeared before the committee in April to talk about the clubhouse.
Details he gave then included people who voluntarily applied for the program would learn work skills, moving from "transitional" work to ultimately “independent supported” work.
The clubhouse will also help with people’s education and health and provide opportunities for socialization, said Fancil.
Fancil sought $140,725 in Health First funding for startup costs for the clubhouse for six months. Plans are to seek grant and Medicaid funding for it as well.
He noted the K21 Health Foundation should be giving some money for the clubhouse, with a meeting in July to outline the specifics.
Fancil said a callout meeting for the clubhouse was held at The Gathering Place in Warsaw recently.
"We had about 20 people there. We had people who were members of the previous clubhouse (in the area who) talked about some of the things that worked and some of the things that didn't, but they were really excited that we were bringing this idea back to Warsaw," he said.
Fancil said leaders hoped the clubhouse could be started as soon as possible by "(renting) a space or (meeting) in a conference room."
Committee members expressed support for the idea but were hesitant as they really only have $50,000 left in funding for the remainder of the year, with some other entities requesting money.
Committee member Rich Haddad said he wanted to allot some money as the clubhouse would help with more than just mental health.
Committee member Dave Wolkins also suggested giving some funds for the clubhouse as he saw the impact of the previous clubhouse in the county on its participants.
"It was amazing," he said. "Their self-confidence, their self-worth, everything went up tremendously. I would like to do what we can for them."
The committee tabled their decision to its next meeting, set for 6 p.m. July 16 in the Kosciusko County Courthouse's old courtroom, for more time to reflect.
Fund Approval Process
The committee also heard that the approval process for projects using Health First monies in the county was changed by a vote of the Kosciusko County Commissioners at their last meeting on June 17.
Projects using the Health First money, which is special funding the state gave to counties who opted into the program, were previously approved in Kosciusko County first by the committee, then by the Kosciusko County Board of Health and ultimately by the commissioners, with a memorandum of understanding for the latter.
Under the new process, Health First Kosciusko Coordinator Elizabeth McCullough will first look at proposals, with them then going to Kosciusko County Health Department Administrator Bob Weaver and Kosciusko County Health Officer Dr. Eric Waldo for "conceptual approval."
The commissioners next must make conceptual approval of any project, with the project then moving to the advisory committee, then board of health, with a memorandum of understanding for each project finally being signed by commissioners.
The official policy from commissioners stated the change was made in part due to Health First Kosciusko funding decisions affecting Waldo's license, with McCullough also mentioning legal concerns motivated the decision.
In other business, the committee heard the county had officially hired McCullough as coordinator. She'd been working as interim coordinator since Kurt Carlson was fired by the county in March.
