11.18.2024 Minutes

Illinois Opioid Remediation Advisory Board (IORAB)

Workforce Development & Infrastructure Working Group Meeting

November 18, 2024

Virtual Meeting Held Via Zoom

Meeting minutes

Workforce Development and Infrastructure Working Group Members

Blanca Campos, Community Behavioral Healthcare Association (Chair)
Chelsea Laliberte Barnes, Wolf Pack; Live4Lali
Angel Cruz, Peoria County Sheriff's Office
Dr. Trenton Fedrick, Habilitative Systems, Inc. Kristin Hamblock, Rosecrance Angie Hampton, Egyptian Health Department
John Horsely, Kenneth Young Center
Jen Nagel-Fischer, The Porchlight Collective, SAP Lora Passetti, Chestnut Health Systems Teressa Perdieu, CEAD Council (DBA Hour House)
Chris Schaffner, JOLT Harm Reduction Mila Tsagalis, DuPage County Health Department

Welcome and Roll Call

Blanco Campos, Chair, welcomed the group and started the meeting. Sue Pickett, PhD of Advocates for Human Potential, Inc. (AHP), facilitator, took roll call. All members were present except for Angel Cruz, Dr. Trenton Fedrick, and John Horsely. Quorum was established.

Review and Approval of September 9, 2024 Working Group Meeting Minutes

Ms. Campos called for a motion to approve the September 9, 2024 meeting minutes. Teressa Perdieu made a motion. Chris Schaffner seconded. All members present voted in favor. The motion passed.

Regional Care Coordinating Agency (RCCA) Portal

* The RCCA manages the development of notice of funding opportunities (NOFOs) and grant award processes for the Illinois opioid abatement funds. All questions about NOFOs, application assistance and status, and aways should be submitted to the RCCA via this online portal. Additional information and assistance can be found at Contact Us - Illinois Regional Care Coordination Agency, and Awards - Illinois Regional Care Coordination Agency

Priority Recommendations for the IORAB

Capital Infrastructure Projects Update

Mr. Jim Wilkerson, interim State Opioid Settlement Administrator (SOSA) at the Illinois Department of Human Services/Substance Use Prevention and Recovery (IDHS/SUPR), described the Capital Infrastructure Projects recommendation which provides funds for capital projects that support the core abatement strategies. Funds awarded through this recommendation will be a one-time investment. He noted that this recommendation was approved in 2023 by the IORAB and Steering Committee without a funding amount. These groups are now charged with voting on a funding amount for capital improvement projects. Mr. Wilkerson noted that there had been recommendations that this funding be used for housing and asked for feedback from this group about this use.

  • Ms. Campos noted the importance of adequate housing for recovery.
  • Ms. Campos mentioned a previous capital grant program launched by the IDHS and the Illinois Department of Commerce & Economic Opportunity (IDCEO) for funding for capital investment. The program was for a total of $15 million dollars with individual awards ranging between $50,000 to $250,000. The goal was to fund at least 60 programs. Applications were due in 2022. Eligible applicants included not-for-profit human service providers working with low-income or marginalized populations. Additional information about this program can be found at: IDHS and DCEO Launch First-Ever Human Services Capital Grant Program. Ms. Campos asked about the funding amount. Mr. Wilkerson said he would get additional information to answer this question.
  • A working group member asked whether housing funded by settlement dollars would require residents to be abstinent. He noted that there is an urgent need for low-barrier housing. Mr. Wilkerson stated that the funding could be used for low-barrier housing but that an organization that did have requirements for residents to be abstinent could receive funding.
  • A working group member noted that the field's preference would be to be able to use these funds for a variety of capital projects. Widening the scope of allowable uses would be better than narrowing it. She stated that an organization had collected information about behavioral health service providers' needs related to capital investment and that there were many multimillion-dollar projects waiting to be funded. Ms. Campos added that the estimated total need for capital investment was $150 million. Mr. Wilkerson stated that while this amount was not currently available in a one-time investment fund, it might be available in the future.
  • A working group member noted that unlicensed recovery residences can pose health and safety concerns. SUPR should have licensing requirements for organizations that are awarded this funding.
  • A working group member asked if faith-based programs could apply for this funding. Mr. Wilkerson responded that they would be eligible to apply.
  • A working group member noted that she hoped that this funding would be available to existing licensed providers who had needs related to capital improvement, not solely new builds or new providers. The member noted that the Housing First model should be emphasized.
  • A working group member stated that she had heard that some service providers' requests for licenses for new locations had been denied due to SUPR's need to maintain expenses at their current level. She asked if SUPR's decisions related to capital funding would consider this limitation as providers would want assurance that they could be licensed in a location prior to building or remodeling a site. Mr. Wilkerson said that he would investigate this issue.
  • Ms. Campos asked if the group needed to vote on these issues. Dr. Pickett responded that they did not need to vote. Mr. Wilkerson will consider the group's feedback as the funding amount for this recommendation goes to the IORAB and Steering Committee.
  • A working group member asked about the timeline for this recommendation. Mr. Wilkerson stated that the plan was for the funding amount to be presented to the IORAB at the January meeting, if approved by the IORAB the recommendation will be presented to the Steering Committee at their February meeting. SUPR will partner with another agency to create and post a NOFO for the recommendation.
  • A working group member asked for clarification on the similarities and/or differences in the definitions of capital investment and capital improvement. Mr. Wilkerson responded that he would collect more information about this question, including the minimum funding amount for all types of projects, and provide an answer.
  • A working group member asked if the recommendation would be revisited annually or remain effective for a certain amount of time. Mr. Wilkerson responded that if unutilized funds that go into the one-time investment fund continue to increase, SUPR will reassess how to best use this funding, although it may not be annually. The IORAB and working groups can change the parameters of how funding should be used.

Training Resources & Strategies Recommendation

Working group members reviewed their draft recommendation to develop training resources and strategies to support people as they build behavioral health careers (see below).

Training Resources & Strategies Recommendation (DRAFT)

Develop training resources and strategies to support people as they build careers in behavioral health (mental health and substance use treatment). This includes students enrolled in high school, undergraduate college, community college, and behavioral health graduate school (healthcare, human services and public health professional programs). Possible resources include training guides, videos, and processes to train and certify people providing career building services to ensure they deliver appropriate content, including field experiences. Career building efforts should include peers, PLE, PWUD, family members and allies of PLE/PWUD and compensate them equitably. Efforts should prioritize PLE and PWUD, and efforts to reach these individuals might include, but not be limited to, presentation of career information in community engagement activities, in recovery groups, and in other SUD treatment or harm reduction settings. Resources include stipends and scholarships to reimburse behavioral health service providers to educate and recruit students in the settings described above.

  • A working group member asked how the recommendation would be implemented. She said that if the recommendation was implemented via making large pots of money available to certain regions, it might not be different from current opportunities like the Behavioral Health Workforce Center or opportunities provided by the Illinois Certification Board. She asked if the administrative burden of receiving this funding, which may be a smaller amount, would be worthwhile for smaller organizations. Ms. Campos explained that the original intention of the recommendation was to support clinicians or behavioral health providers to go to events like job fairs to increase awareness of careers in behavioral health. Funds could also be used to create products like videos to increase awareness and stipends to reimburse behavioral health providers for their work.
  • A working group member said that her organization would be unlikely to spend enough money on reimbursing staff for awareness activities to offset the administrative cost of managing grant funding. She noted that this might be a limitation that other organizations.
  • Ms. Campos asked for feedback from harm reduction agencies about whether the administrative burden for this grant would prevent them from seeking this funding.
  • A working group member at a harm reduction agency talked about the need to include funding for resources to support the wellness of people who might be recruited into behavioral health roles, especially for smaller agencies who do not have a human resources department. Another working group member at a harm reduction agency shared that their organization will not pursue state funding because of the associated administrative burden.
  • Ms. Campos asked what could be done to ease this burden on smaller organizations. Recommendations included using funding to help smaller organizations hire staff to delegate work to so leadership could engage in administrative efforts. For example, a grant-funded staff person who understands harm reduction and can support smaller organizations in grant applications and management would be helpful.
  • Ms. Campos asked Mr. Wilkerson if it was possible to use remediation funds to support personnel to assist with grant applications and management for smaller organizations. Mr. Wilkerson responded that this need for administrative support had been discussed. He stated that they could consider proposing a recommendation in this area in January; however, there are questions about the amount of funding and the number of organizations that could apply for this funding.
  • Ms. Campos asked if the group wanted to put the recommendation on hold to have further discussion of supporting smaller organizations with administrative needs. Several working group members asked for more discussion and for additional clarity about the difference between this recommendation and the recently approved training and technical assistance center recommendation. The group will review the draft recommendation again at the January meeting.

Public Participation

* A member of the public recommended that the group think about what the barriers were to use of funding in the manner needed rather than thinking about whether they could or could not use the funding in a specific way. They encouraged the group to be specific about the definition of housing and its relation to the core abatement strategies. They recommended seeking input from people providing services to people who are unhoused.

Adjourn

Ms. Campos thanked participants and adjourned the meeting. The next meeting of the IORAB Workforce Development & Infrastructure working group will be on January 13, 2025, from 11 AM - 12 PM.