Heidi Bunch
Brooks Behavioral Health Center shut its doors after less than a year in their location at 420 C Street in Hawthorne.

Less than one year after establishing a clinic in Hawthorne, Brooks Behavioral Health Center has closed its doors.

Formerly located at 420 Third Street, Suite C – the office was to help be a “solution to the growing substance abuse crisis in the rural areas surrounding Reno.”

As of May 3, according to the State of Nevada, Brooks Behavioral Health Center LLC is now on the Nevada Medicaid sanctions/Office of Inspector General Exclusions list. Owner Devin James Anthony Brooks is also on that list.

According to the Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General website, the “Office of Inspector General has the authority to exclude individuals and entities from federally funded health care programs pursuant to section 1128 of the Social Security Act (and from Medicare and state health care programs under section 1156).”

The site states that these exclusions are imposed due to a number of reasons, “Mandatory exclusions: OIG [Office of Inspector General] is required by law to exclude from participation in all Federal health care programs individuals and entities convicted of the following types of criminal offenses: Medicare or Medicaid fraud, as well as any other offenses related to the delivery of items or services under Medicare, Medicaid, SCHIP, or other State health care programs; patient abuse or neglect; felony convictions for other health care-related fraud, theft, or other financial misconduct; and felony convictions relating to unlawful manufacture, distribution, prescription, or dispensing of controlled substances.”

The Independent-News tried to reach out to Brooks Behavioral Health Center LLC but no one is currently at the business and a Google search states that the facility is “permanently closed”.

In 2018, Brooks commented on the behavioral health office stating, “I know the conversations about these types of services coming to rural Northern Nevada are often discussed in negative tones, and I’m so pleased that we are finally able to change that narrative. It’s been a long time coming, but it was important that we get it right.”

As of May 22, three more entities linked to Brooks have been added to the exclusions list. Those include: Brooks Genetics and Brooks Family Clinic LLC (two licenses).

The Google search showed only a 3.1 star review. Penny, a Google reviewer, expressed, “I love Brooks, they have helped my son out tremendously.’

Yet most reviews were negative. With comments such as “Devin Brooks is a horrible business owner. Only cares for ‘paid checks’ and not the clients care” to such reviews as “The staff seems to be uniformed and a lack of an office procedure. This makes difficult for a client who is new to receiving mental health services.”

The Independent-News tried to reach out to the Las Vegas office for comment. Our phone calls were not answered.

If you are in need of mental health services, reach out to your physician who can direct you to the best fit for your needs.