The agency that aids Fairfax County residents suffering from mental illness, mental retardation and substance abuse problems will raise its fees in October in an effort to maintain its services amid expanding costs.

The increase in fees for the Fairfax-Falls Church Community Services Board reflects the difficult fiscal environment in which even the most fundamental government agencies are struggling.

The fee increases apply to both existing charges for items such as outpatient transportation, which is increasing by $20 to $100 per month, and new ones, including a one-time mental health “access fee” of $25 collected on a second visit to the agency.

Much of the increase will be borne by insurance companies or the government through programs like Medicaid, or from subsidies through the agency itself when a patient has no other ability to pay. The agency is not legally allowed to turn down service for someone who can’t afford it.

This story continues below
Advertisement

The Community Services Board hopes the fee increase will help it generate $17.5 million in revenue this fiscal year, 5 percent more than the last, said Dr. James Stratoudakis, a psychiatrist and the agency’s director of quality improvement and emergency management. The agency’s budget is about $150 million.

“If we don’t come close to that $17 million, that’s factored into our operating budget, which means we have to keep positions vacant longer or slow down the hiring process,” he said. “We have to balance the books.”

One factor behind the desired growth in revenue is in the agency’s efforts to recoup more costs through Medicaid. About one-third of the mentally ill adults in the jurisdiction of the Community Services Board are enrolled in the federal entitlement program for the poor and disabled, compared with about 50 percent across the state, according to a recent report.

Stratoudakis said the comparatively higher incomes in Northern Virginia, which correspond to the higher cost of living, have made it tough for many to qualify for Medicaid.

Fairfax County Supervisor Jeff McKay said the fee increases are part of “the beginning of what is going to be the topic of conversation for the next couple years.” The drooping housing market and economy are expected to cause a $430 million shortfall in fiscal 2010 for the county and school system.

“It’s frustrating to have [the fee increases], but candidly, we had to do it,” he said. “And it’s probably going to have to happen again next year and the year after that.”

wflook@dcexaminer.com