News photo by Kayla Wikaryasz The Northeast Michigan Community Mental Health Authority (NeMCMH) is seen meeting for their regular monthly meeting, on Thursday. NeMCMH Executive Director Nena Sork gave updates regarding the mental health authority’s lawsuit against the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS).

ALPENA — On Thursday, Nena Sork, Northeast Michigan Community Mental Health Authority (NeMCMH) executive director, told the NeMCMH board that there has been no updates regarding its lawsuit against the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS).

Sork testified at a hearing on Dec. 8 regarding the lawsuit which is against a request for proposal (RFP) for services that MDHHS put out in August. The lawsuit was initially filed on Oct. 9.

Sork told the board on Thursday that the judge hearing the case in the Michigan Court of Claims has not provided his opinion on the case yet.

“He said that he would get the opinion out within a week,” she said. “He also said he tends to overpromise and underdeliver.”

Sork said that her team is not concerned with the delay because NeMCMH is still able to operate as normal.

“We just continue doing what we’ve always done and actually it’s a little more pressure on the state because contracts and bidders are waiting to hear … so it’s fine with us if it takes a while to get that summary,” Sork said.

Sork told the board that if there are any updates, changes, or rulings, she will notify board members.

In November, Sork told The News that NeMCMH is participating in the lawsuit with five other mental health authorities in northern Michigan. She explained that MDHHS’s attempt to restructure funding to mental health authorities will strip those organizations of “statutory obligations” that the mental health code in Michigan requires.

“So things that are in the mental health code that by law we must do, that went through the legislative process and became law, this RFP would strip us of those obligations,” Sork explained in November.

Sork said that the state will still require NeMCMH to perform services as dictated in the mental health code without allowing NeMCMH, or other community mental health authorities, to bid on the RFP. This will force mental health authorities to provide services through private organizations.

In short, Sork said that the MDHHS RFP process is attempting to put public systems into the hands of the private sector. Though mental health authorities located in urban areas may not be affected as much by this restructuring, Sork said that NeMCMH, for example, cannot contract out services to private entities as there are not enough in existence to meet the demands of the authority’s client base.

NeMCMH is participating in this lawsuit with the following community mental health authorities and county governments in Northern Michigan:

— Centra Wellness Network, which serves Manistee and Benzie counties.

— Wellvance, which serves Iosco, Ogemaw, and Oscoda counties.

— Gogebic Community Mental Health, which serves Gogebic County.

— North County Community Mental Health, which serves Emmett, Cheboygan, Charlevoix, Otsego, Antrim, and Kalkaska counties.

— Manistee County Commissioners, who serve Manistee County.

NeMCMH serves Alpena, Alcona, Montmorency, and Presque Isle counties.

Kayla Wikaryasz can be reached at 989-358-5688 or kwikaryasz@TheAlpenaNews.com.