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County leaders urge lawmakers to close funding gap for community behavioral health services
Summary
County commissioners and board representatives told the subcommittee that court-ordered and crisis services, diversion programs and workforce investments need additional funding beyond the governor's recommendation to meet statutorily mandated duties and reduce state hospital stays and jail encounters.
Phil Brady, Wasco County commissioner and co-chair of the Association of Oregon Counties Health and Human Services steering committee, told the subcommittee county governments support community behavioral health funding in HB 5025 and outlined specific dollar needs to meet mandated court-ordered and crisis services.
"County boards of commissioners are the local mental health authority," Brady said, asking the committee to fund county responsibilities that are not Medicaid-eligible and to close a funding gap created by rising caseloads and a federal court order shortening stays at the state hospital. He called for $64,800,000 to narrow the funding gap for court-ordered and crisis services; $16,500,000 to maintain investments in jail-diversion services and workforce initiatives; $20,000,000 to support career ladders and retention through tuition assistance and housing stipends; and $20,000,000 to increase wages to retain workers providing high-acuity public care.
Commissioner Nafissa Fai and other county representatives reiterated that counties have statutory duties as local public health authorities and stressed prevention and upstream investments as part of a three-legged health strategy (CCOs, early childhood and public health). Brady and other witnesses said without additional county funding, services such as crisis response, aid-and-assist, community restoration and civil-commitment investigations face growing strain from chronic vacancies and rising demand.
Speakers asked the subcommittee to support local behavioral-health safety-net funding to keep individuals in community care and reduce avoidable state hospital and jail encounters. The public hearing on HB 5025 recorded these requests; the subcommittee did not take votes on these appropriations during the session.
