County Approves $79.5 Million in ARPA Funds for Local Projects

Mobile Health Initiative Sees Rapid Growth, Considers Expansion

PLYMOUTH, MA -November 7 - Plymouth County Commissioners have authorized the disbursement of $79,562,591.96 in American Rescue Plan Act funds to support various community projects. The county received 122 applications by the Oct. 24 deadline and is working to process them efficiently.

"We've done a little, so if you want, sorry, again, $79,562,591.96," said County Treasurer Tom O’Brien during the recent commissioners' meeting. "Every community has submitted up to their original allocation, a number of communities, but not all submitted an additional refund of up to 10%, in case we have resources available."

O’Brien noted that the high volume of applications received on the deadline day is keeping the review team busy. "We are working through them as fast as we can," he said. "I really want to compliment the team. They're spending an incredible amount of time reviewing these."

The county's Mobile Integrated Health Project has seen rapid growth since its launch in July. Call volumes have increased from approximately 100 in July to over 300 in October, prompting discussions about acquiring a second vehicle to meet demand.

"By August, they were up to about 200. September, they were doing over 300 calls. And I believe that number for October is in the mid 300s," the treasurer reported. "So much so that they're looking for a second vehicle."

The project, which operates through local hospitals, has expanded its reach to about 11 different communities in the county. It primarily works with Brockton and Beth Israel Deaconess hospitals.

"If the patient is a patient at one of the hospitals in Plymouth County, but lives in Hingham, then yes," O’Brien explained when asked about the project's coverage area. "Everyone around Plymouth, because of Beth Israel Deaconess, a lot around the Brockton area. But some outliers that you wouldn't have naturally expected."

The Professional Firefighters of Massachusetts, a stakeholder in the program, has trained 11 firefighters to participate in the initiative. The extensive training program is part of the project's efforts to enhance emergency medical services in the county.

County officials plan to assemble data from the project and present a comprehensive report to the commissioners in early December. This report will provide insights into the groups being served and the age demographics of patients, helping to guide future decisions about the program's expansion and focus.

In other county business, the Registry of Deeds reported strong financial performance for the first third of fiscal year 2025. Real estate activity has been particularly robust, with the registry nearly $200,000 over estimates through October.

"The month of October saw a huge burst of mortgages, a lot of refis, which is kind of surprising," Register of Deeds John Buckley said. "Mortgages, deeds were 16% higher than last year. So we're clearly at a good pace relative to the budget."

However, Buckley expressed concerns about staffing levels due to a hiring freeze, noting that some departments have had to reduce customer service hours when employees are out sick or on vacation.

"We're actually closing for an hour every day," Buckley said. "Customer assistance may not seem like much, but we had a day today when every registry in the state had this lifelike explosion."

The county is also facing infrastructure challenges, particularly with aging equipment in some facilities. County Administrator Frank Basler reported the need to replace a 50-year-old generator at Wareham District Court and a failing chiller at Brockton Superior Court.

"Great news is we have a gas line there," the administrator said regarding the Wareham generator replacement. "So we're going to be going out to bid, looking for bids. And then at that point, I'll come back to give you an update. Anticipate it'll be around $90,000."