DaytonDailyNews.com

RIVERSIDE — A local mental health services company that was padlocked April 11 over a debt with a pharmaceutical company reopened its doors this week after a judge granted a stay.

Advanced Therapeutic Services Inc., 1320 Woodman Dr., resumed its normal operations Wednesday, April 23, and will stay open at least until a May 23 court hearing, owner Jeff Kolaczkowski said Friday.

"Obviously the courts were more willing to take into account the wellness of the patients affected than (the pharmaceutical company)," Kolaczkowski said.

At issue is a $13,500 debt owed to San Francisco-based McKesson Corp. for an injectable antipsychotic drug used by four or five patients at Advanced, according to court records and Kolaczkowski.

"Negotiations (over settling the debt) have started up again. I'm hopeful in two weeks it will be behind us," Kolaczkowski said.

Advanced treats nearly 7,000 patients and employs 70, including nine psychiatrists and 35 mental health counselors at its two-story building on Woodman Drive, Kolaczkowski said.

Sheriff's deputies padlocked ATS's offices on the second floor, which still allowed the company to operate out of the downstairs offices of its sister company, ATS Behavioral Health.

"We were able to shift things around to where we were able to treat all of our patients while our motion was pending," Kolaczkowski said.

McKesson's lawyer Mark J. Sheriff of Columbus has said the company is willing to work with Advanced to resolve the debt.

"The goal is to collect the money," Sheriff said. "Nobody wants to put somebody out of business, but it depends on what their ability to pay is."

Contact this reporter at (937) 225-7408 or agottschlich@DaytonDailyNews.com.

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