Facilities in Colorado Springs, Pueblo receive grants to integrate physical and behavioral health
DENVER, Colo. (KRDO) - Numerous healthcare facilities in Colorado Springs and Pueblo are receiving grants to improve access to integrated primary care, mental health, and substance use services.
Tuesday, the Department of Health Care Policy and Financing (HCPF) announced it awarded grants to 147 organizations statewide. Officials said the grants were made possible by the Primary Care and Behavioral Health Statewide Integration Grant Program created by HB22-1302. The 2022 law focuses on rural and frontier locations to increase access to behavioral health services.
According to a press release, the grant prioritizes Health First Colorado (Colorado’s Medicaid program) and Child Health Plan Plus (CHP+) members but provides funding for practices serving all Coloradans.
From now through 2026, the grants totaling more than $29 million are meant to improve, increase, or add integrated behavioral health services. The program also funds behavioral health providers who want to offer primary care services.
According to officials, grantees can use their awarded funds for projects such as:
- New models of care that help an office build special care teams and connect with psychiatrists addiction medicine specialists and social programs
- Advancing telehealth platforms, electronic health records systems, and billing systems
- Increasing workforce - such as hiring behavioral health providers and training existing providers on effective mental health and substance use programs
- Creating provider space - such as redesigning rooms to provide individual or group counseling
- Training, education, and licensing/credentialing for primary care teams
For patients, this means they can get behavioral health counseling, medications, and integrated care support close to home. Officials said this also helps address the workforce shortage, improving primary care offices’ ability to serve people with behavioral health needs.
“Coloradans, especially those in rural and underserved areas, need more access to behavioral health care,” said Cristen Bates, Director of HCPF’s Office of Medicaid & CHP Behavioral Health Initiatives & Coverage in a press release. “These grants will provide the fuel many organizations need to meaningfully increase the amount and quality of behavioral health care they can provide and in a setting where many patients feel more comfortable - in the office of their family doctor.”
Below is a list of grantees in Colorado Springs and Pueblo:
- Center Pointe Family Medicine, LLC - Colorado Springs
- Fountain Valley Healthcare, LLC - Colorado Springs
- Project Ember Initiative - Colorado Springs
- Skills Academy Vocational Center - Colorado Springs
- Sunrise Health Care PC - Colorado Springs
- Adult Medicine Specialists, P.C. - Pueblo
- Castillo Primary Care - Pueblo
- Family Care Specialists, P.C. - Pueblo
For more information on the grant recipients, click here.
