Lane County unveils Community Health Improvement Plan 2026'2030, prioritizing access, resilience and mental health

Lane County public health staff presented the Live Healthy Lane Community Health Improvement Plan (CHIP) for 2026'2030 during a March 3 joint session of the Board of Health and the Board of County Commissioners.

Presenters said the CHIP was developed through a community-led process with 46 coalition members and 12 consultants between July and December 2025 and is jointly funded by Lane County Health & Human Services, Trillium, Lane Community Health Council, PacificSource and Kaiser. "This is a process that is truly proud of in the way in which we do both the assessment and the plan portion," a presenter said.

The plan centers three priorities: 1) strengthen access to health services by promoting community health workers and enhancing health literacy; 2) build community resilience and access to basic needs through local community resource hubs; and 3) strengthen community and family resources for mental health and well-being, including system coordination, help-seeking campaigns and early screening for perinatal and early childhood mental health. Presenters explained a shared definition of access—awareness, availability, affordability, accessibility, accommodation and acceptability—was developed to guide strategy and measures.

County staff said the CHIP will be monitored by a newly formed data team that will develop measurable indicators and share dashboards with the community. Presenters noted a recent ODOT mobility grant to study transportation experiences of people in subsidized housing and people with disabilities outside the Eugene/Springfield metro area; staff invited community members to a March 18 Cottage Grove transportation forum and posted QR-code resources for participation.

Commissioners offered praise and emphasized implementation: Commissioners noted past CHIP accomplishments (including tobacco prevention), the need to align county strategic planning and CHIP priorities, and the loss of a $19.5 million federal grant that had been expected to accelerate work but was later rescinded. Several commissioners said they supported continued CHIP implementation using local partnerships and resources.

Why it matters: County staff said the CHIP aligns with the Lane County strategic plan and is intended to reduce duplication across programs, target resources where disparities are greatest, and build sustainable funding and cross-sector collaboration to make measurable improvements in health equity.

What's next: staff will convene Live Healthy Lane partners to begin implementation in 2026, launch monitoring and policy-tracking activities, and report progress annually to the community. Community engagement and partner-aligned funding strategies were emphasized as critical to sustained impact.

Representative quote: "The CHIP is not Public Health's plan. It's our community's plan," a presenter said.