Sawyer County Health & Human Services reported Nov. 3 that it has begun enrolling clients in the county’s new Comprehensive Community Services program and is pursuing options to reduce the cost of placing high-need clients outside the county.

Alicia, staff member, told the committee the county is "moving forward with CCS," and that the first client enrollment was scheduled for the week of the meeting. She said Caitlin, a clinician, was ready to provide psychotherapy services under the CCS program and that Haley Sands, a service facilitator, would meet a potential second client.

The report to the committee linked service expansions to fiscal strategy. Fiscal and HHS staff said the department is pursuing improved billing for CPS case management, youth-aids case management and CCS services to increase local revenue. Staff also discussed using the county’s existing transitions facility differently and said that, while additional training and some staffing would be required, bringing placements closer to town could improve treatment access and lower costs.

Julia, staff member, described the cost differential: one staff speaker calculated an annual cost of roughly $341,000 for a single out-of-county placement and said placing two county residents locally could rapidly offset capital outlays for local housing or repurposed facilities.

Committee members and staff discussed practical constraints: current capacity at the transitions facility, licensing and staff training needs, and whether additional beds or repurposed buildings would meet higher-acuity needs. Staff said some placements already at the county’s transitions facility remain budgeted in the current year while longer-term plans would be considered in 2026 budget planning.

The committee did not take formal action on facility repurposing at the meeting but directed staff to continue exploring training needs, staffing models and billing strategies to support local placements.