One point six million dollars in federal money will flow to Coastal Horizons Center in Wilmington over the next four years.
News of the grant, announced this week, comes on the heels of massive cuts by the state to mental health services. As WHQR’s Rachel Lewis Hilburn reports, the money will bolster the Center’s ability to treat an often under-served population.
Coastal Horizons provides a range of mental health services – from crisis intervention to criminal justice alternatives to treatment of substance abuse and mental health disorders. Many of the center’s clients are uninsured or under-insured.
Recent funding cuts at the state level have rattled a number of mental health services providers – leaving them with open questions about their future ability to serve patients. That’s one of the reasons Margaret Weller-Stargell, President and CEO of Coastal Horizons, says she’s thrilled about the grant.
“This will allow us to serve 200 clients this year through that funding… We project serving 375 in year two and then 600 clients in year four. So you see, that is showing we will broadly be able to assist so many clients through this funding.”
The money will help to enhance the current medical team – which consists of a family nurse practitioner and a certified medical assistant.