The Mental Health Millage, on the ballot on Aug. 4, helps provide services to Ottawa County residents struggling with mental health and substance abuse.
OTTAWA COUNTY, Mich. — This August, Ottawa County voters will be asked if they want to renew and restore the Mental Health Millage.
The millage, on the ballot on Aug. 4, helps provide services to Ottawa County residents struggling with mental health and substance abuse.
“These are people with substance use disorders, mental health issues, or intellectual and developmental disabilities. It gives them a place to go that’s integrated into the program,” said Dr. Michael Brashears, chief executive officer of Community Mental Health of Ottawa County.
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The program is available to everyone in Ottawa County.
“25 percent of all individuals at one time or another are going to suffer from some type of mental health crisis or mental health symptomology,” said Brashears.
The millage supports mental health services that are not funded through state or federal resources, helping fill critical gaps in care for residents who might otherwise go without support.
“It stands in the gap of services that people can’t get unless they’re on Medicaid or have severe forms of mental health issues, intellectual and developmental disabilities, or substance use disorders,” Brashears said.
In addition to providing counseling, assessments and treatment services, the millage also supports housing assistance programs and services for incarcerated individuals.
“We even assist people with housing, helping them stabilize some of those payments,” Brashears said. “We’re able to provide psychiatry, counseling, and assessment services in the jail in a way that most counties can’t.”
Brashears said the program has made a significant impact on the community over the past decade and continues to provide life-changing resources to those in need.
“The millage program enhances and saves lives,” he said.
To learn more about the program and the resources it provides, click here.