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MDHHS raises funding rates, but a Cass County mental health agency says it isn't enough

A black walkway cuts through small bushes and rocks, leading towards the entrance of a gray wooden building. A large green fabric sign reads Woodlands in green text. Next to the image, a 3 foot tall light green box offers free Naloxone, which is used to counteract drug overdoses.
Michael Symonds
/
WMUK
Woodlands Behavioral Healthcare Network in Cassopolis.

Woodlands Behavioral Healthcare Network says the state has increased its funding to help pay for mental health services. But its CEO says they still face a budget crisis.

Woodlands Behavioral Healthcare Network pays for mental health services for around a thousand people in Cass County.

A few months ago, CEO John Ruddell told state lawmakers the agency would run out of funds by September, blaming the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services, which funds Woodlands and the other 47 agencies in Michigan's community mental health system.

Relief came at the end of May, when the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services increased its reimbursement rates.

But Ruddell said this has only postponed, not resolved the funding crisis.

"The mid year rate amendment helped push our cash flow issues into the spring of 2026. MDHHS is still underfunding the CMH system," Ruddell said in an email.

Michael Symonds reports for WMUK through the Report for America national service program.

Report for America national service program corps member Michael Symonds joined WMUK’s staff in 2023. He covers the “rural meets metro” beat, reporting stories that link seemingly disparate parts of Southwest Michigan.