Two Vail Communities Clubhouses may close after state funding ends, leaving members living with serious mental health challenges without a similar program.<\/p>\n
Vail Communities said funding for its St. Paul and Minneapolis clubhouses will stop at the end of June, per a notice from the Minnesota Department of Human Services (DHS). The group said 500-600 active members use those locations, and there are no other clubhouse-model programs in Minnesota without its services. <\/p>\n
\u201cIt really has turned out to be a lifesaver for me\u2026 It\u2019s got me from living in my bed, literally living in my bed, out back into the world where now I\u2019m able to work as a peer support specialist part-time, and at 71, I\u2019ve gone back to college at Metro State University,\u201d Margaret Humphrey, a member who frequents the St. Paul location, said.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou know, I\u2019ve watched my life transform. I mean, not that I haven\u2019t struggled\u2026 But because of the clubhouse, I don\u2019t feel alone anymore,\u201d another member, Nishanth Peters, said.<\/p>\n
Senior Director of Clubhouse Programs & Public Policy for Vail Communities, Chad Bolstrom, said Vail Communities\u2019 40-year-old Hopkins location will continue to receive county funding. He said the state money that allowed the expansion of a St. Paul clubhouse and supports the Minneapolis site will end on June 30.<\/p>\n
In a March notice to Vail Communities, DHS wrote, \u201cWe remain committed to continued work together\u2026\u201d <\/p>\n
\u201cHowever, after a thorough review, DHS is unable to extend Vail Communities\u2019 single-source contract after its current conclusion on June 30th, 2026,\u201d the letter continued.<\/p>\n
DHS said this year\u2019s findings from the Minnesota Office of the Legislative Auditor (OLA), \u201cplaced significant scrutiny on the use of sole-source contracts across the state.\u201d<\/p>\n
Sole-source, or single-source, funding means money was awarded without a request for proposal (or RFP) process, which allows other organizations to apply.<\/p>\n
Bolstrom said the two clubhouses are at risk of closure without that funding, given the timing of the notice.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe hope that it doesn\u2019t,\u201d Bolstrom said. \u201cBut I think given the late nature and the amount that this support has helped to kind of sustain, it\u2019s going to be really challenging for us to find a solution otherwise.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI think one of the reasons why we were identified as the sole-source contract provider is because we are the only accredited clubhouse system providing services in the state of Minnesota,\u201d Bolstrom continued.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe believe in, you know, the process of, kind of a selective process of fairness. But there wasn\u2019t one offered.\u201d<\/p>\n
DHS said in its letter and in response to emails from 5 EYEWITNESS NEWS that it is planning to issue an RFP to support clubhouse-type programming. However, that funding \u201c\u2026is slated to be available at the beginning of 2027.\u201d<\/p>\n
In the meantime, 5 EYEWITNESS NEWS asked DHS what it\u2019s doing to ensure continued care for members without other similar programs.<\/p>\n
A spokesperson said, \u201cThe department works to ensure continuity of care for the participants of programs that face a disruption, including Vail Communities.\u201d However, they did not provide specifics.<\/p>\n
Vail Communities leadership said they are unaware of any efforts beyond plans for an RFP and said requests for bridge funding were denied. <\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s in our kind of short and long-term plan to not have to rely on this funding in the same way,\u201d Bolstrom said. <\/p>\n
\u201cBut we really didn\u2019t have any notice or identification that that switch was happening now, in part because we\u2019re trying to find county funds, we\u2019re trying to find a Medicaid benefit, we\u2019re trying to find other solutions that would make these clubhouses sustainable without this grant funding, or at least with less of it. But the reality is, we\u2019re not there yet\u2026 And that\u2019s the part that feels kind of incongruent,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhatever happens, it\u2019s not going to be easy for myself and any number of people,\u201d Peters said. <\/p>\n
\u201cThis is like a lifeline. I want them to consider that.\u201d<\/p>\n
DHS said it warned Vail Communities a year ago that the contract and grant funding would not be extended. Vail Communities disputed that, saying they knew the funding would need annual renewal and had been asking about it since the fall.<\/p>\n
5 EYEWITNESS NEWS also contacted the Minnesota Office of the Legislative Auditor (OLA) after DHS cited its report in the March notice letter. Legislative Auditor Judy Randall said OLA could not speak it because OLA \u201chas not audited DHS\u2019s contract with Vail Communities.\u201d<\/p>\n
Referencing that January 2026 report, Randall added that OLA\u2019s recommendation \u201c\u2026is not that DHS should not use single source grants; rather, the recommendation is that DHS should follow required state policies when using single source grants.\u201d<\/p>\n
See the full responses to 5 EYEWITNESS NEWS\u2019 questions attributed to DHS:<\/p>\n
Why has the Medicaid benefit analysis not been completed? When is it expected to be completed? <\/p>\n
\u201cThe study has not yet been completed, as the department ensures that the proper program integrity elements are considered before finalizing our recommendations for a potential new Medicaid program. It is in process.\u201d<\/p>\n
Has that $1.2 million allocated to it been used? For what?<\/p>\n
\u201cThe most recent award to Vail Communities used funds from the federal mental health block grant, which was a temporary source of funding. The recipient was told a year ago that the grant would not be extended.\u201d<\/p>\n
Does DHS plan on an RFP for Clubhouse-type programming? If so, when?<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are planning to issue an RFP in this space, with funding slated to be available at the beginning of 2027.\u201c<\/p>\n
Without a sole-source contract or an RFP, are there other options for the Clubhouses to be funded?<\/p>\n
\u201cCompetitive RFPs are the process for awarding state contracts. We can award a grant in a noncompetitive manner (\u201csingle source\u201d)<\/a>\u00a0when, after a search to validate, only one entity is determined to be reasonably able and available to meet the intended purpose and objectives of the grant. The preference for the RFP process was further reinforced by the release of the OLA report in January of 2026.\u201c<\/p>\n Does DHS have reason to believe the program is high risk for fraud?Is Vail Community Services under investigation for any allegations of fraud? (They say they are not.)<\/p>\n \u201cWe don\u2019t share information about which specific providers are under investigation, but, again, this organization was told a year ago that the single-source contract would not be extended.\u201d<\/p>\n Is there anything DHS is doing\/could do to ensure continuity of care for program clients without other programs like it?\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cThe department works to ensure continuity of care for the participants of programs that face a disruption, including Vail Communities.\u201c<\/p>\n See Legislative Auditor Judy Randall\u2019s full response to 5 EYEWITNESS NEWS\u2019 inquiry:<\/p>\n \u201cThe Office of the Legislative Auditor (OLA) has not audited DHS\u2019s contract with Vail Communities; as a result, we are not able to speak to whether DHS properly handled its contract with that organization.<\/p>\n In OLA\u2019s January 2026 performance audit,\u00a0Department of Human Services: Behavioral Health Administration Grants<\/a>, we discussed concerns about how DHS has used\u00a0single source grants<\/a>.\u00a0 OLA\u2019s recommendation in this section of the report is not that DHS should not use single source grants; rather, the recommendation is that DHS should follow required state policies when using single source grants.<\/p>\n The finding on\u00a0page 13<\/a>\u00a0states:<\/p>\n The Behavioral Health Administration used single source grants when they were not justified and did not always sufficiently document its reasons for using single source grants.<\/p>\n The recommendations on\u00a0page 15<\/a>\u00a0state:<\/p>\n \u2022 The Behavioral Health Administration should use single source grants only when just one entity is reasonably able to meet the grant\u2019s purpose and objective, as required by Office of Grants Management policy.<\/p>\n \u2022 The Behavioral Health Administration should sufficiently document the reasons for using single source grants.<\/p>\n \u2022 The Behavioral Health Administration should implement effective internal controls to ensure that when it uses single source grants, it does so in compliance with Office of Grants Management policy.\u201c<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tFor Related Stories:\u00a0Funding<\/a>\u00a0\u00a0Mental Health<\/a>\u00a0\u00a0Ren\u00e9e Cooper<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Two Vail Communities Clubhouses may close after state funding ends, leaving members living with serious mental health challenges…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":589635,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[60],"tags":[159,97,259,260,256171],"class_list":{"0":"post-589634","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-mental-health","8":"tag-funding","9":"tag-health","10":"tag-mental-health","11":"tag-mentalhealth","12":"tag-renee-cooper"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/589634","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=589634"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/589634\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/589635"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=589634"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=589634"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=589634"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}