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IPRTF to reintroduce behavioral care center proposal; civil department reviewing legal fit
Summary
Task-force members agreed to reintroduce a proposed behavioral care center (BCC) work group for a vote at a future meeting and heard that county civil staff are reviewing model materials to assess Washington law and licensure implications, including whether involuntary treatment holds would require additional approvals.
Whatcom County’s IPRTF steering committee agreed to reintroduce a proposal to form a work group on a behavioral care center model and to include the proposal in the next meeting packet so members can review it and vote.
Peter (IPRTF steering committee member) told the group that a BCC work-group proposal had been presented previously but could not be approved because the prior meeting lacked a quorum. He said the item will be added to the packet for the next meeting and that a short discussion and vote could follow.
Why it matters: The behavioral care center (BCC) and related “23-hour” program concepts are intended to expand community-based crisis care and alternatives to incarceration. Members said the county needs to assess legal, licensure and funding implications before adopting detailed recommendations.
Heather (IPRTF member) raised a regulatory question: whether building a BCC should include exploring licensure that would allow for involuntary treatment holds. She said that would be controversial and would require broad community input. Peter said Eric Ritchie (civil department staff) has asked the county civil department to review materials from other jurisdictions — including the Nashville model — to assess how they would adapt to Washington law.
Members did not vote on the formation of the work group at the meeting; instead they asked that the proposal be circulated in the full packet so members can read it in advance. The committee planned to revisit the item at the next IPRTF meeting.
