Northpointe Behavioral Healthcare System is committed to working with Dickinson, Iron and Menominee counties to address concerns and to provide education regarding the operations and funding of the organization. Open communication and accountability are two of the organization’s main values.

Northpointe, a community mental health service provider, is funded by Medicaid (94%), state General Funds (5%) and county appropriations (1%). NorthCare Network, the Pre-Paid Inpatient Health Plan (PIHP), is the Medicaid payor and contracts with Northpointe to provide specialty behavioral health services. Northpointe is required to follow the Michigan Mental Health Code, Michigan Medicaid Provider Manual, and MDHHS Administrative Rules regarding service delivery. The organization, being publicly funded, is highly regulated with intense reporting requirements regarding finances, services provided and quality measures.

Retention and recruitment of staff, especially in behavioral health, is a nationwide concern. Northpointe’s Board of Directors has been committed to making employee wage changes to ensure wage scales are comparable to others in the region. It has been practice for the last few years to review data regarding cost of living in November and for the Northpointe board to determine if a cost-of-living adjustment needed to be made in January of the year. Since Northpointe’s funding is capitated, meaning a fixed amount per person that is independent of the type/number of services provided, the board’s decision regarding the percentage for cost of living has been conservative to ensure that adequate funding was available for any unforeseen increase in services during the remainder of the fiscal year. Dependent upon the funding available toward the end of the fiscal year, additional payments to employees have been considered by the board to reward longevity and retention. Fair, consistent methods to determine the payment amounts have been implemented based upon approval of the board.

Northpointe is required to provide 24/7 crisis services and has not stopped providing that service. Trained mental health professionals are available to provide crisis screenings and, if clinically appropriate, to conduct a pre-admission screen required for Medicaid inpatient hospitalization. A person can present to the Northpointe office in Menominee, Iron, or Dickinson 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday to see the crisis worker, call the crisis number or report to the nearest Emergency Department. After hours, a person can call the crisis number or report to the nearest Emergency Department. In addition to this crisis service, Northpointe has also implemented Adult Intensive Crisis Stabilization in Menominee County and Children’s Intensive Crisis Stabilization in all three counties.

A significant barrier to crisis services exists in Menominee because the closest hospital is in Marinette, Wisconsin. In 2016, prior to my appointment as Northpointe’s CEO, the organization was advised by legal counsel that staff should not be providing behavioral health services at the hospital in Marinette, as they were not licensed in Wisconsin.

Further review of information received in 2016 included a Wisconsin Attorney General opinion (1989) stating that Michigan residents should not be treated differently than a Wisconsin resident when presenting for care in Wisconsin. Northpointe has been working with Michigan Department of Health and Human Services since August 2023 to re-evaluate potential solutions regarding the border barrier in Menominee.

Northpointe has provided a lot of information to the county commissioners and has hosted Lunch and Learn education regarding community mental health funding in Dickinson and Menominee in the past month. The next Lunch and Learn is scheduled for noon April 4 at the Northpointe Iron River Office. This is open to the public; to RSVP, contact Laurie at lgardipee@nbhs.org. It is also available via Zoom for those who are unable to attend in person. Additional educational opportunities will be scheduled to help clarify misunderstandings and to engage with community members.