Trillium Regional Vice President Dave Peterson gave his annual report to the Craven County Commissioners during their Aug. 19 meeting and explained some recent changes to the organization.
Trillium Health Resources is a specialty care manager for individuals with substance abuse issues, mental health disorders, and intellectual or developmental disabilities.
Peterson said they finally launched a new plan, that had been in the making for six years, on July 1, the Trillium Tailored Plan.
“The tailored plan serves the most high-needs individuals, we’ll be managing the whole person,” Peterson said. “Those with severe mental illness also may have some physical health issues going on. We have never managed the physical health side of the house, we now have to.”
The tailored plan will help uninsured individuals and individuals on Medicaid manage behavioral and physical health services, according to Peterson.
Trillium will now contract with primary care physicians and pharmacies to cover all physical and mental health issues, according to Peterson.
Before Trillium launched the tailored plan, in 2021, low-to-moderate-risk individuals on Medicaid were moved to one of five private insurance companies, according to Peterson. Now, Trillium only serves high-risk individuals.
Trillium consolidated with the Sandhills Center and Eastpointe, which expanded Trillium from 28 counties to 46 counties, according to Peterson.
“With these 46 counties, we have 51,000 tailored plan members, those are members that are very high-risk, high-needs,” Peterson said. “We have 163,000 Medicaid direct members and 287,000 uninsured individuals.”
Peterson has been the Regional Vice President for Craven County’s region for 10 years but introduced Craven’s new Regional Vice President, Victoria Jackson.
Jackson will now cover the south-central region, which Craven County is a part of, according to Jackson.
“With our expansion, we’ve had to get some additional folks in,” Peterson said. “She’s [Jackson] got 20 years of experience and she’s a licensed clinician.”
Last year, Trillium served a total of 3,187 individuals in Craven County, according to Peterson. Of the total consumers, 2,387 had a primary mental health diagnosis, 768 had substance abuse issues, and 518 had intellectual or developmental disabilities.
“I always say those numbers don’t add up to the 3,187 because some folks have a dual diagnosis,” Peterson said.
Peterson said Trillium has been heavily on re-entry programs to help their members with mental health or substance abuse issues transition back into the community. Trillium also has care management staff to focus specifically on foster children.
Trillium engages in other community-based projects and programs like substance abuse prevention in schools and the distribution of Narcan to each county they serve.
They have also implemented value-based purchasing, which rewards individuals who link to services immediately after leaving a hospital or institution.
“As soon as someone gets out of the emergency department with a mental health issue, they could get a reward if they get linked into services right away,” Peterson said. “The longer they wait, the more likely they’re going to be tied up with law enforcement or in the emergency department again.”
Some upcoming projects Trillium has been focusing on include the Back@Home North Carolina program and Oxford Houses, according to Peterson.
Back@Home is a service that helps individuals with first-time rent or utilities when they re-enter the community from an institution, according to Peterson.
Oxford Houses offer a clean, sober housing option for individuals in recovery, as previously reported by the Sun Journal. Trillium opened an Oxford House in Craven County in July.
Peterson said Trillium continues to promote and open Oxford Houses.
Before Peterson began his presentation, Commissioner Sherry Hunt presented him with a plaque from the Disabled American Veterans Chapter 26 of Havelock.
The plaque thanked Trillium for their unwavering support in helping bring “The Wall That Heals to Havelock in October of 2023.
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