Ramsey County will no longer bill people for mobile crisis response services
ST. PAUL, Minn. (FOX 9) - Ramsey County is ending its controversial policy of billing people who call the crisis hotline in search of life-saving help from the mobile crisis response team. The FOX 9 Investigators previously exposed how the county billed hundreds of people after they called the crisis hotline.
Ramsey County ends controversial crisis hotline billing policy
What they’re saying: Ramsey County board chair Victoria Reinhardt explained why they decided to end its policy of billing people in crisis.
"We wanted to make that change so that people knew that we really care about them as individuals," Reinhardt said. "We care about our taxpayers as well and we’re going to make this work."
The Backstory: Earlier this year, the FOX 9 Investigators highlighted the story of Adam Haidet who had experienced a mental health episode. He was billed $342 after a family friend called the Ramsey County crisis hotline to seek help from the mobile crisis team.
"People will be afraid to call," Haidet said of the county’s billing policy. "Honestly, "I believe at least one life will be lost if it’s not changed."
By the numbers: Ramsey County has been billing people for years, unlike other counties across Minnesota.
Ramsey County has received about $3 million in grant funding from the state to support mobile crisis response services – that accounts for about 23% of its total cost for the county.
Reinhard said the grant funding was being used for mental health crisis services but "not for that hotline."
As a result, one out of every three encounters with the Ramsey County mobile crisis team last year resulted in billing people directly.
Ramsey County’s policy of billing people in crisis was highly criticized
"That grant money is to be used for people who are uninsured or underinsured or simply can’t pay," said Sue Abderholden, director of Minnesota’s chapter of the National Alliance on Mental Illness. "Saying then you’re going to bill the individual directly absolutely makes no sense."
What’s next: Ramsey County will no longer bill individuals who call the crisis hotline seeking mobile crisis services.
"We’re going to make sure that whether you have insurance or not, that you will get this service," Reinhardt said.
The county says it may take some time for their billing system to catch up. If you mistakenly receive a bill for mobile crisis services, you are urged to call Ramsey County at 651-266-7878.