Gov. Albert Bryan Jr. this week pointed to new health and wellness initiatives taking shape across the territory — but acknowledged that when it comes to mental health infrastructure, significant gaps remain.
Speaking at Monday’s Government House press briefing, Bryan highlighted the upcoming reopening Friday of the Vincent F. Mason Sr. Coral Resort in Frederiksted as a symbol of progress. The project, completed by J. Benton Construction, is part of a broader effort to create safe, public spaces that support both physical activity and mental well-being.
“These kinds of spaces matter,” Bryan said. “They give families and young people a place to go that supports both physical and mental well-being.”
But beyond pools and parks, the territory’s behavioral health system continues to face long-standing challenges. Bryan acknowledged that the government is still paying to house Virgin Islanders with serious mental health conditions in facilities across the mainland U.S.— some in high-security psychiatric institutions — because there are no appropriate long-term care options locally.
“We’re struggling to pay what we already owe to those facilities,” Bryan said in follow-up remarks. “And we know not everyone still needs to be there.”
Plans are in motion, he said, to return some individuals to the territory, including a proposal to house lower-need individuals in a designated behavioral health unit at Golden Grove Correctional Facility on St. Croix. Others could be moved to long-term care once adequate local facilities are operational.
One possibility is the shuttered Sea View Nursing and Rehabilitation Facility on St. Thomas, which closed in 2020. Bryan said the government is still actively assessing the property and considering its use for expanded mental health services.
“We are about to purchase Sea View, where we have money set aside,” Bryan said. “We’re looking at an engineering report to see what exactly that’s going to take before we purchase it, because we don’t want another rotting facility on the government’s hands.” In the 34th Legislature, $4 million from the Jeffrey Epstein Victims Compensation Fund was set aside to outfit the facility once the purchase is complete, according to former Sen. Donna Frett-Gregory, a primary sponsor of the bill.
Meanwhile, Bryan added after the presser that several health care providers based in the mainland U.S. have expressed interest in operating facilities in the Virgin Islands, and that he plans to meet with them and showcase local options.
“If we buy it, then the person can repair it and run it,” he said, “and we’ll be able to have some extra facilities to put people in.”
The administration is also considering a more immediate solution for residents dealing with homelessness, many of whom also face behavioral health challenges, by repurposing existing government buildings into transitional housing. Bryan said the goal is to make spaces livable quickly, without the costly additions of full kitchens or major infrastructure changes.
Meanwhile, recruiting mental health professionals remains one of the most persistent hurdles. The territory has struggled to bring in licensed psychiatrists and clinical psychologists, and while compacts have been signed to rotate providers through, Bryan admitted the model isn’t ideal.
“For someone dealing with mental illness, it’s important to have a provider they can trust and see regularly,” he said. “That’s something we continue to work on.”
Even as the administration works to expand access and services, Bryan pointed to concerning signs in the broader health landscape. Only about 55 percent of government employees are fully using their government health insurance benefits, like wellness checks, he said, adding that the private sector should expect to see a rise in health insurance costs in the coming year.
“These numbers tell a story,” Bryan said. “If we want to be a healthier Virgin Islands, we have to do more than build — we have to shift how people engage with care.”
