Integral Care: Under Investigation By Texas HHS

Austin, Texas - On the 16th of October 2019, a Texas Health and Human Services Supervisor confirmed that an ongoing investigation into local Mental Health Authority Integral Care’s practices remains in action for 3 months consecutively now from a complaint charging the local mental health provider with “Exploitation of Clients as well as adverse policies with regards to Quality of Care with Integral Care’s Clients." There are other calls in the community to hold Integral Care responsible along with City of Austin Shelter contractor Front Steps, INC. and Ann Howard formerly of Ending Community Homeless Coalition accountable for those agencies responsibility in the Homeless crisis which Austin now faces. The complaint filed was done so by the organization's ombudsman's office at the direction of a Client who demonstrated that services supplied was causing harm to the individual.

A maxim often heard is that of "Individuals who pursue the study and practice of mental health do so as the result of the impact of their own mental health experiences or the mental health experiences of those closest to them." Such an observation would suggest that in order for a qualified and efficient mental health organization leader to be effective, one must tend to the needs of their workforce in addition to serving the general needs of the community. But when the goals of growth and profitably exceed the priorities of a mental health organization, the fundamental purpose of being a community provider becomes completely lost. Texas is 51st in the country in access to mental health. (Source: Mental Health America Alexandria, VA.)

What we first known in the Austin Community as Austin/Travis County M.H.M.R. then known as AT.C.I.C., and known today simply as Integral Care has grown over the years and has gone through identity makeovers yet has not evolved or emerged as a productive organization compared to community needs and the grants and government funding which have been invested into the organization over the years. The condition in the state of mental health of Austin's Homeless community is a pronounced testament to the accuracy of such an implication. With these elements responsible for Austin's mental health stalemate:

1.) The lack in change of effective leadership over the past 26 years.

2.) Land development and building expansion that are not increasing the agency's ability to serve more individuals as an effective results of commercial land development growth.

3.) Utilizing unqualified candidates as case management and practice managers as the result of being below the nationally competitive paid scale, the inability to appropriately train the workforce, almost intolerable work policies and work politics.

4.) Simply evading the fiduciary duty to the people of our country, State, and city. Our most vulnerable.

representing no surprise that Integral Care is under investigation by Texas Health and Human Services not only for current, but also past conduct and policies. Does the State of Texas and Austin's Community ever consider Integral Care's role in the national opioid epidemic? Oh yeah, they sweep that under the rug. In the instance of Herman Botello (link: Obituary) who passed away at 49 Monday, Aug. 5, 2013 in the combination enablement by his care providers here in Austin as the result of a highly toxic cocktail of Fentanyl 100mcg/hr and Klonopin 10 mg in addition to his pre-existing condition of alcohol dependency, he died at the hands of Integral Care's services.

Between 2009 and 2013 there had been a rash of deaths related to Integral Care/M.H.M.R./ ATCIC Clients. (Shouldn’t it be of question whether Integral Care has changed its name so many times in an effort to relinquish past liability?) Some of the Clients even resided on rental property that Integral Care owns.

It’s is common knowledge in the governmental world that if an individual who has identified as any type of addict at any point in their life, in the untimely event that the individual become deceased, it is not uncommon for the Medical Examiner to rule the death as accidental. Even if an agency, like Integral Care, has played a role with regards to prescribing additional potentially lethal medications in addition to the knowledge of an individual’s addiction history.