Colorado addiction treatment providers come close to shutting down

Nonprofits report Behavioral Health Administration repeatedly changed rules

Colorado nonprofits serving people struggling with addiction say the state’s Behavioral Health Administration repeatedly changed the rules for vital grants, pushing some organizations close to shutting down as they waited months for tens of thousands of dollars in reimbursement.

Racquel Garcia, CEO of Castle Rock-based Hardbeauty, said the organization’s bank account got down to about $700 at one point — a hair’s width from forcing the peer-mentoring group to close its doors altogether. Nonprofits spend their funds on approved uses and expect the state to reimburse them, she said. And when the money is late, they can’t cover expenses.

“I can only say, ‘Hey, the state’s going to pay, I swear it’s coming’ (to creditors) for so long,” Garcia said.

Neighbor to Neighbor to 636Coffman St., Suite 203 Longmont, 80501.

• Longmont Meals on Wheels, which provides food to the elderly and disabled in the city, is taking donations online at bit.ly/2xzpchs, over the phone at 303-7720540 and by check through the mail to Longmont

Meals on Wheels at 910 Longs Peak Ave. Longmont, 80501.

• The OUR Center in Longmont can be reached at 303-772-5529. The center’s Community Market accepts food and toiletries donations from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays and from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. on weekends and major holidays. The center’s Community Closet accepts clothing and housewares from 9 a.m. to noon Mondays and Wednesdays only. Donors are asked to bring a maximum of two bags or boxes per donation for the Community Closet, but there is no limit on food donations. All donations are accepted at the south side entrance “Donation Zone” door, 220 Collyer St., Longmont CO. Donations can be made online at www.ourcenter. org/donate-items.

• HOPE for Longmont, which operates a nightly homeless shelter in the city, can be reached at 720494-4673 for information on donating. Donations can also be made online at bit. LY/2UI6GW3, and check donations can be made out to HOPE and sent to 804 S. Lincoln St. Longmont, 80501.

• Safe Shelter of St. Vrain Valley, a Longmont organization aiding domestic abuse survivors, is in need of hand sanitizer, liquid hand soap, dish detergent, face masks, cleaning supplies, canned fruit, frozen meat and individually wrapped or

The Denver Post spoke to seven people who work for or with nonprofits that received grants administered by the Behavioral Health Administration, all of whom reported delays in payment and frustration with unexpected changes the state agency requested after they signed contracts.

Colorado’s Behavioral Health Administration had a difficult first two years, with controversy after its first commissioner was fired and the head of another state agency temporarily took over, turnover among other employees near the top, and difficulty meeting ambitious deadlines. The second permanent commissioner will start later this month.

In Hardbeauty’s case, Garcia said, the agency would identify what seemed like small problems in the information her organization had submitted two or three months later, then refuse

sized food items. Monetary donations, however, are the most helpful to the nonprofit. Prior to donating items to the organization, call 303-772-0432. To donate by mail, send a check made out to Safe Shelter of St. Vrain Valley to P.O. Box 231 Longmont, CO 805020231. For other ways to help or to donate online, visit bit. ly/3aa8m0d.

• The Inn Between of Longmont, a nonprofit providing affordable housing in the city, is seeking contributions for its Starfish Emergency Fund, which helps residents who are now unable to pay their rent, or who have increased expenses. To donate by phone, call 303-684-0810. To contribute by mail, send a check made out to The

Inn Between to 515Kimbark St., Suite 107, Longmont, CO 80501. For more information on ways to donate, visit www.theinnbetween. org/donate.

• El Comité de Longmont, an organization serving the Latino community in the city which has been reaching out to immigrants in the wake of the coronavirus outbreak, can receive donations online at elcomitelongmont.org/ donations. The nonprofit can also take check and cash donations sent through the mail to 455 Kimbark St., Longmont, CO 80501.

• The Reentry Initiative supports men and women coming out of Colorado prisons through Longmont Parole. The Reentry Initiative’s Welcome Back Center in Longmont is linking with parolees, working remotely to provide case management and direct support for housing, transportation, employment, education, medical, mental health and other basic needs. With the accelerated release of people from Colorado prisons, the Reentry Initiative’s referrals are up by more than 500%, increasing weekly. To donate, people can send a check made payable to

The Reentry Initiative at

402 Kimbark, Longmont,

CO. 80501. People can also donate online at thereentryinitiative.org. For more information call 720-640-9513.

• Recovery Café Longmont is a community of refuge to release the entire $50,000 the nonprofit was due to receive in the month in question. Like many small nonprofits, the organization didn’t have employees focused on managing grants and had to hire additional accounting help, she said.

The agency caught up on some months’ payments, Garcia said, but still hasn’t reimbursed the group more than $100,000 for December and January.

The money for the agency’s grants comes from the American Rescue Plan Act, a $1.9 trillion federal stimulus package passed in 2021. States received shares of the money that they have to designate for specific purposes by the end of this year and spend before January 2027.

The Behavioral Health Administration has distributed more than $145 million in American Rescue Plan grants to more than 100 organizations statewide, which created an “unprecedented opportunity” to expand programs for children, youth and people

and healing for people in recovery from addiction, mental health, homelessness, and additional life challenges. It was formed in late 2018to address the unmet need for adequate, accessible, long-term recovery services in Boulder County. To donate by phone, call 720-815-2885. To contribute by check, please address to Recovery Café Longmont, 402 Kimbark St., Longmont, CO 80501. To donate online, visit our website www.recoverycafelongmont.org.

• Carbon Valley Help Center, a food pantry in Firestone, serves residents in the Weld County portion of the St. Vrain Valley School District. This area includes the towns of Dacono, Firestone, Frederick, Mead and portions of Longmont and Erie. Assistance is offered with non-perishable food and toiletries as well as financial grants to assist with rent/mortgage payments, utility payments and some auto repair. Donations of non-perishable food may be delivered to 150 Buchanan, Firestone, CO 80520on Tuesdays and Thursdays between 9and 3. Cash/ check donations are always welcome and may be delivered or mailed to CVHC, P.O. Box 508, Firestone, CO 80520. Volunteers are welcome to apply via the in the criminal justice system, agency spokeswoman Stefany Busch said.

The agency did not respond to The Post’s questions about late grant payments or nonprofits’ concerns about frequent rule changes.

“BHA is committed to working with providers on the challenges they face, including creating resources to guide the invoicing process, as well as one-on-one meetings and office hours allowing providers to ask questions and receive realtime assistance,” she said in a statement.

‘It’s been extremely frustrating’

The Behavioral Health Administration signed contracts and started grant payments a few months late last year, said Gabe Cohen, executive director of Rifle-based Discovery Café, which works with incarcerated people with substanceuse disorders in western Colorado.

So far, the agency has

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only reimbursed Discovery Café’s expenses from October, and owes the nonprofit about $59,000 over multiple months — even though the contract dictates the state has 45 days to reimburse costs, Cohen said. Under the contracts, organizations submitted proposed budgets for particular projects or goals, and the agency agreed to reimburse costs for salaries, equipment and other expenses in line with those budgets.

To make up the difference, Discovery Café essentially emptied its savings and took out a line of credit, Cohen said. He said the state agency keeps changing its rules for using the money, requiring the organization to repeatedly resubmit documentation and delaying payment. Some other nonprofit workers told The Post they believed the federal government was responsible for most of the changes.

“I’m sure they’re going to pay us, but it’s been extremely frustrating,” Cohen said. “If they’re going to put

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it out there that they’re going to award grants and pay in 45 days, they should do what they say they’re going to do.”

The problem is widespread, said Breeah Kinsella, executive director of the Colorado Providers Association, a trade group representing mental health and addiction care providers.

“Every single one of my providers who received these ARPA funds have had issues,” she said. “These smaller organizations cannot wait 75, 90 days for this money.”

Federal money always brings another layer of documentation and reporting, and it appears the state is being extra cautious so the federal government won’t find problems and demand repayment, Kinsella said. The Behavioral Health Administration has only existed for about two years and dealt with leadership turnover during that time, but hopefully the new commissioner will bring stability, she said.

“I do think we’re on the right path,” she said.

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