SAN ANTONIO – News about impending layoffs at Laurel Ridge Treatment Center has sparked concerns about the future of mental health care in San Antonio.
The company’s management informed staff in a letter on Monday that 648 employees would be laid off, effective June 26.
The facility, located near Loop 1604 and Redland Road, offers inpatient and outpatient treatment for both mental health and drug and alcohol problems.
Laurel Ridge made news just a few weeks ago when the state announced it would no longer allow the facility to treat patients using Medicare or Medicaid. The state said that it was due to Laurel Ridge failing to meet patient health and safety requirements.
Last year, KSAT 12 News reported on a state investigation that found certain conditions and practices at Laurel Ridge had been putting patients in danger.
One woman whose then-teenage daughter was treated for depression at the facility five years ago spoke to KSAT 12 News anonymously Tuesday morning.
She said even back then, she recognized major problems there, mostly related to understaffing.
“It was a two-week period, and it was an absolute nightmare. And I would never bring my child here again,” she said. “For it to have more people lose their jobs, I mean, how would they stay open?”
KSAT 12 News has been requesting interviews with Laurel Ridge’s CEO, Ashley Sacriste, since last November, yet she has declined every invitation.
Another email sent to her on Tuesday, asking specific questions about the layoffs and the center’s future, went unanswered.
It is unclear how the facility will continue operating with a smaller staff.
However, the inability of Medicare and Medicaid patients to receive treatment is already having a ripple effect throughout the community.
“Right now, the Medicare/Medicaid patients, those unfunded patients, they will be coming our way for all of our hospitals, all of our participating hospitals,” said Jelynne LeBlanc Jamison, president and CEO of the Center for Health Care Services.
She said due to that issue, there will be a total of 450 fewer inpatient and outpatient beds available for people who need treatment for mental health.
“This just exacerbates the problem,” she said. “We already knew we had an issue. We had a shortage, and now it’s even exaggerated by this loss.”
LeBlanc Jamison said she is part of a collaborative with others who treat mental health patients.
Recently, she said Sacriste met with them and informed them of the impending layoffs, letting them know the employees would be available for other jobs.
According to the letter Laurel Ridge sent to its staff members, they are not eligible for rehire within that company.
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