County health department presents Comprehensive Local Plan work session; board signals support for systemwide behavioral health transformation

Health Department leaders briefed the Multnomah County Board of Commissioners on the county’s Comprehensive Local Plan (CLP) work session and the CLP-plus framework, describing an action-oriented plan to build behavioral-health system infrastructure, improve data and analytics, expand workforce capacity, and address basic needs such as housing that drive behavioral-health outcomes.

Senior managers framed the plan around three goals: (1) build capacity for behavioral-health system transformation (governance, staffing, cross-sector coordination and shared metrics); (2) strengthen service delivery and fill workforce gaps (with a focus on recruiting and retaining BIPOC providers and tracking real-time service availability); and (3) address upstream social determinants by bolstering housing and prevention programs for people with behavioral-health needs.

Anthony Jordan, senior manager of addiction services, told the board the plan seeks to move beyond fragmented, crisis-driven responses toward a coordinated system that tracks outcomes and supports implementation. He described the county’s behavioral-health landscape as historically underfunded and siloed and said the plan emphasizes building the analytics, governance and coordination capacity needed for system change. A Health Department presenter said the division currently manages roughly 41 funding streams and urged consolidation of reporting to inform decisions.

The presentation listed expected outcomes including: dedicated capacity for system coordination, a unified data approach to identify trends, decreased vacancy rates among behavioral-health providers, expanded connection of people to services in real time, and increased engagement and recovery in underrepresented communities.

Commissioners commended the plan and pressed for specifics. Commissioner Stegman and others praised the focus on upstream prevention, but asked how initiatives will be funded and how progress will be measured. Health Department staff said the CLP-plus will include measurable indicators, expanded capacity for data and epidemiology, and more robust community engagement—including a patron survey and targeted focus groups to reach underserved populations. Staff said the plan will be used in upcoming conversations with Coordinated Care Organizations (CCOs) and other provider partners.

Commissioner Myron framed the plan as a long-sought effort to create a functioning system where none existed, and urged immediate action rather than additional analysis: “We know what to do. Just do it,” she said in remarks summarizing decades of prior recommendations and local analyses. Several commissioners emphasized the importance of engaging frontline providers, people with lived experience and cross-sector partners (homeless services, housing, criminal justice) to implement the plan.

Health Department staff said the CLP-plus is a work-in-progress and that the department will return to the board for further discussion and board action in the new year. Commissioners signaled support for next steps, with repeated emphasis on turning planning into operational governance, a shared data infrastructure, and concrete investments to reduce vacancy rates and expand accessible services.