FARGO — A local family is fearing for the future and well-being of their child, and others, after service hours were cut for a behavioral health program in the metro.
They rely on the program to keep their children safe and in school.
The North Dakota Department of Health and Human Services recently
cut service hours to behavioral health programs
.
Kolten Meyers is like a lot of children his age. The 9-year-old likes monster truck rallies and video games. But unlike some children, he needs some help with his behavior.
“They help me with my anger,” Kolten said.
Doctors diagnosed Kolten with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) along with oppositional defiance disorder. His mother, Shelly Lindbo, says he’s been removed from day cares and schools for spitting, yelling, throwing things and running away; behaviors he’s been learning to avoid since he’s been working with behavioral health specialists for about 30 hours a week over the past several years at Solutions Behavioral Health in Fargo.
“It was such a relief to be able to have the Build Program and the support of everybody with the program,” Lindbo said.
Lindbo says she found out two weeks ago that they would end altogether for this year on Feb. 16.
It’s the result of the same policy change from the North Dakota Department of Health and Human Services that requires providers to limit services to 42 hours a year. The policy started Jan. 1.
“It’s sad because he’s doing well right now, and he has that support. So to lose it you just don’t know,” Lindbo said.
WDAY reached out to NDHHS for more information. The department declined an interview and provided a statement saying, “The new policy prioritizes appropriate care focused on positive outcomes for children, while balancing provider accountability with responsible stewardship of taxpayer dollars.”
“Cutting a program that helps them stay in school and helps them regulate doesn’t seem appropriate to me,” Lindbo said.
Lindbo says she can’t even use private insurance to cover it.
“(The Build Program) will only accept medical assistance. So that is what Kolten has to be on at this point,” she said.
Lindbo says she and Kolten’s teacher will try to have him in school full time and hope he can build upon the foundation he learned at Solutions Behavioral Health. She doesn’t know if Kolten will be granted more hours next year.
Kjersti Maday joined WDAY as a reporter in May of 2024. She is a native of Granada, Minnesota and graduated from Minnesota State University Moorhead in 2015.