The Bowling Green Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors recently voted to endorse the upcoming Wood County Alcohol, Drug Addiction & Mental Health Services Board 1.6 mill renewal levy. The high quality of life in the Bowling Green area is created by the positive link between the important services that the WCADAMHS Board provides to citizens and businesses.
Listed below are facts pertaining to the endorsement.
The WCADMHS Board plans, funds, and monitors programming for the full Wood County Continuum of Care. Services range across an entire spectrum of mental health and substance use recovery services and benefit individuals living with behavioral health needs and their loved ones. According to The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, one in five U.S. adults experience mental illness each year and, among people aged 12 or older in 2021, 8.6% (or 24 million people) had at least one drug use disorder.
Local tax dollars always go to supporting, creating, or implementing programming completed by board-certified providers. Providers serve youth, adolescents, and adults with mental illnesses and/or addiction. The WCADAMHS Board’s current administration rate is 7%. Approximately $0.93 of every tax dollar goes directly to Wood County services to aid in real-life difficulties including depression/anxiety/suicide, childhood behavioral problems, domestic violence, youth/adult substance use, and more, and $0.07 stays with the board for operations and administrative costs. The levy currently constitutes about 70% of the WCADAMHS Board’s revenue.
The WCADAMHS Board is not asking for new monies; this levy is a renewal of the levy that was passed by Wood County residents in 2018. Levy funds will last 10 years and help to fund prevention, education, intervention, treatment, and recovery services for Wood County citizens. The proposed levy renewal is a 1.6 mill levy, which would break down to be approximately $35 annually per $100,000 home, or roughly $0.67 per week for the year.
Employers have the opportunity to utilize WCADAMHS services to directly address issues of employee mental illness and substance abuse. When symptoms are left untreated, the costs related to staff turnover, increased on-the-job physical injuries, accidents and mistakes, the cost of health care and increased workers’ compensation and disability claims rise. Passage of the renewal levy will ensure vital programs and services will continue.
The Bowling Green Chamber of Commerce Board of Directors is proud to support the upcoming local renewal levy, and we remind you to vote on Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2024.
Bowling Green Chamber of Commerce
