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Plumas County behavioral health director warns of 'shoestring' staffing, urges 20–25% pay boost to recruit therapists
Summary
Director Sharon told the Plumas County Behavioral Health Commission that long-running therapist shortages and costly telehealth contracts have left the department on a 'shoestring' and asked the commission to press the Board of Supervisors for a 20–25% wage increase to stabilize staffing and preserve services.
Sharon, director of the county behavioral health department, told the Plumas County Behavioral Health Commission that the department has been operating with critically low staffing for several years and urged the commission to press the Board of Supervisors for immediate pay increases to recruit and retain therapists.
"This is critical staffing. We're at a shoestring level... we cannot sustain this going forward," Sharon said, describing an allocation of nine therapist positions with only about 3.25 in-person therapists filled and additional reliance on telehealth contractors. She said telehealth increases nominal capacity but is more expensive "because the…
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