News Clips
Larimer County’s mental health center lays off 75 people, blames rise in uninsured and Medicaid reform
August 8, 2024
By: Jennifer Brown
It’s hardly surprising that safety-net mental health centers are feeling the loss of Medicaid coverage for 600,000 Coloradans in the span of about a year, said Vincent Atchity, president and CEO of Mental Health Colorado.
“It’s an earthquake that takes a segment out of a highway,” he said. “It’s a crisis for sure.”
Atchity, who advocated for payment reform and more transparency in public spending on community mental health centers, said it’s likely there is “some seismic shifting that occurs when a system is ...
Motel Owners Sue Greenwood Village Over Ordinance That Limits Homeless Motel Stays
August 5, 2024
By: Bennito L Kelty
In March 2020, John Jackson, the Greenwood Village city manager, sent Bharucha a letter warning that she was violating the ordinance because her motel isn't a medical facility, according to the lawsuit. Jackson also called on then-Denver Mayor Michael Hancock to cancel the partnership with CCH, "and the partnership was canceled," the lawsuit notes.
A month later, Bharucha formed a new partnership with SAFER, an initiative supported by Mental Health Colorado, to offer 23 rooms at her motel for two years as a temporary shelter for ...
Climate change is exacerbating Colorado’s mental health crisis. We need leaders who will tackle it head-on.
July 31, 2024
By: Vincent Atchity
Of course, a central part of the solution to eco-anxiety lies in desperately needed policy change. That means bolstering environmental protections at the federal, state and local level. The best treatment for eco-anxiety is collective action around climate and commitment from those in power to prioritize this issue before it’s too late.
We can’t wait, however, for policy changes to come about before helping Coloradans who experience eco-anxiety. We must acknowledge and validate these feelings among our friends and neighbors, ...
Bridges of Colorado: Formerly homeless, jailed vet headed home with new coping skills
July 21, 2024
By: Mary Shinn
Mental Health Colorado President and CEO Vincent Atchity said his organization supported the new program that will help people leave the justice system and focus on their mental well-being.
He expects it will help those facing charges such as trespassing, public nuisance and other lower-level crimes, and free up the court system for those who have committed more egregious crimes.
“There's a significant chunk of the population with the lower charges, that can just be steered away from the pursuit of prosecution,” he said.
...
Colorado leaders launch website this week to help improve the state’s mental health system
July 3, 2024
By: Tatiana Flowers
The Behavioral Health Administration will host public conversations in the coming months to help people learn to use the tool. Those dates will be published on the Behavioral Health Administration’s calendar soon.
“It’s important for a public system to have this kind of visibility to show how it’s improving access for people,” Atchity said. “And for our purposes, as advocates, it’s handy — if we can trust this to be thorough and comprehensive.”
Mental Health Colorado leaders recently released Know Your Rights ...
Report: Colorado suicide, mental health crisis lifeline system needs more work
July 1, 2024
By: Eric Galatas
Two years after the National 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline was introduced, a new report by the group Inseparable says Colorado and other states have work to do in order to fully staff call centers and connect people with the care they need when they need it most. Colorado is answering just 75 percent of 988 calls, and lacks critical resources including care providers, beds and other facilities.
Vincent Atchity - CEO of Mental Health Colorado - said like many other states, Colorado is experiencing a workforce shortage. "Those ...
Watch: The Colorado Sun discusses mental health, improving life and care
June 26, 2024
By: Tatiana Flowers
Colorado Sun Equity Reporter Tatiana Flowers spoke with a panel of experts about how they see mental illness falling through the cracks, what are some solutions or ways to address the issues, and much more.
Speakers included:
Sandra Sharp, Vice President of National Alliance on Mental Illness Denver
Frank Cornelia, MS, LPC, Deputy Executive Director of Colorado Behavioral Healthcare Council
Deborah Harrell, Holistic Healing Practitioner
Vincent Atchity, Ph.D., President & CEO of Mental Health Colorado
Chief ...
New commission creates statewide standards for Colorado jails
June 23, 2024
By: Zachary Dupont
The commission was made up of people with varied backgrounds, including members of law enforcement, victims' rights advocates and mental health specialists. Vincent Atchity, the president and CEO of Mental Health Colorado, who served on the commission, discussed how the variety of backgrounds was greatly beneficial.
“It's an unusual space to be in where you've got, on the one hand, the health advocates, and on the other hand the jail-commander types,” Atchity said. “I think that there was all kinds of good ground for ...
This Pride Month, Recognize the Importance of Supporting LGBTQ Mental Health
June 21, 2024
By: Steven Haden
Pride is a time for us to celebrate Colorado’s vibrant LGBTQ+ population, empower each other, and lean into the joy that this month can bring. But at the same time, we must acknowledge the anti-LGBTQ+ hate and violence that seeks to divide us and instill fear and despair in our communities, as well as the ongoing mental health struggles that many LGBTQ+ individuals face.
As the founder of Envision:You, an organization that seeks to close the gaps in health outcomes for LGBTQ+ Coloradans, I am intimately aware of the barriers that ...
Colorado mandates new rules for eating disorder clinics in response to patient complaints
June 10, 2024
By: Seth Klamann
Colorado’s eating disorder treatment industry will soon face tighter regulations of providers’ practices under a new state law spurred in part by former patients and providers’ accounts of punitive environments and treatment practices.
The law, passed by lawmakers this spring as Senate Bill 117, charges the state Behavioral Health Administration with issuing new rules for eating disorder treatment clinics. Those must include requirements for private and clothed medical exams, outside the view of other patients; specific ...
