Mental health care services in question in Harrison County

Hundreds of people across the Coast will soon be losing community mental health services.

Kay Daneault with Mental Health Association of South Mississippi said, “I hope that people will not panic because we have already had a few phone calls and people are very upset because they don’t know what to expect.”

This wave of panic came after board members for the Gulf Coast Mental Health Center announced they will no longer be able to fund services after August 11^th.  “It gives people a little bit of time to talk to their provider, whoever they are seeing, directly and ask them questions about what for their situation is going to be good for them.”

Daneault added that even though the Mental Health Center will be closing, there are other options here on the Coast, but some may run into other issues. “One of the main issues is maybe that they see people who don’t have insurance so you’ve got folks with no means to pay and they’ve worked out a system where they can still see them regardless of what they are able to pay. There are other providers that do that, but I think there will be more conversation around the Coast to see who is able to pick up folks and in what capacity.”

The Harrison County Board of Supervisors sent out a statement  this afternoon stating they are disheartened by the situation and that: “The Harrison County Board of Supervisors has had a commitment to public mental health for more than 50 years. “

The board also said that they have reached out to its partner counties as well as state and local agencies to find a practical solution to this issue.

Friday night the Mental Health Association of South Mississippi is hosting a ‘Don’t Worry, Be Happy’ Mental Health Care Event at the Biloxi Civic Center. Things kick off at 7 p.m.