Crisis Center Planned By Prince William County Supervisors

PRINCE WILLIAM COUNTY, VA — A crisis stabilization center for people experiencing mental health emergency will come to Prince William County, based on a directive signed by the Board of County Supervisors on Tuesday.

Supervisors said the planned crisis center would aim to decrease hospitalizations, increase access to recovery resources, and help people with mental illnesses integrate back into the community.

County employees were directed to investigate the cost of opening a local crisis center by Supervisor Bailey in March. In Prince William County, there is only one private sector facility available for inpatient behavioral health services. Novant's Prince William facility has more than two dozen adult beds, but none available for people under 18.

The planned crisis center was brought to the board as six of the state's eight psychiatric facilities stopped accepting patients earlier this month. Facilities across the state are struggling with staffing vacancies, according to a presentation given at Tuesday's Board of County Supervisors meeting.

The Eastern State Hospital, which is operated by the state, has a 53 percent vacancy rate for psychiatrists. At the same time, the facility has a 38 percent vacancy rate for direct care staff.

As staff vacancy levels have increased at state-run facilities, the number of open beds have decreased. The Southern Virginia Mental Health Institute, one of the only state facilities still accepting new patients, was 2 patients away from reaching capacity. The other facility still accepting patients, the Southwestern Virginia Mental Health Institute, had 9 open beds.

In their report, county officials estimated that a crisis center in Prince William County would need a 27,000 square foot facility to accommodate 24 beds. 16 of the beds would be used for adults, while eight would be reserved for the county's young people.

Employees estimated that it would cost an initial $6.4 million investment to get the facility started. The annual ongoing operating cost of the facility would be around $17 million per year. The county's community services office estimated that around half of the operating cost would be offset by revenue from Medicare, Medicaid, and private insurance.

Though some details still need to be worked out, Prince William County Supervisors spoke favorably about the idea of a facility in Prince William County.

"This is a step in the right direction," Supervisor Angry of the Neabsco District said. "It's clear that this is a priority for this board. We're in the right place."