Board hears behavioral-health pilots and STEPS infant mental-health expansion; co-responder contract lands with Evergreen Recovery Center

At the May 20 Board of Health meeting, behavioral-health staff and community partners updated the board on several new and expanding programs funded by a mix of North Sound BHASO allocations, opioid-settlement dollars and the county's 1/10th of 1% mental-health tax.

Richard Ury, behavioral-health programs manager for San Juan County, and Jamie Mitchell, human-services manager, said North Sound BHO offered $150,000 for a co-responder pilot; Evergreen Recovery Center submitted a higher but accepted proposal of $222,000 and is entering contract negotiations. Mitchell said Evergreen will visit the county on May 29 for site meetings with Recovery Cafe and other providers.

"They came back at a higher number, at $222,000," Mitchell said. "North Sound agreed. They liked their proposal enough. They said, we'd rather have it done right and pay that amount."

The board also heard about opioid-settlement uses. A Lopez prevention coalition request received one-time funding bridging the 2026''27 school year, and an OARS (opioid addiction recovery support) pilot received a $150,000 allocation for a two-year pilot with small contracts for multiple providers to allow flexibility if uptake varies.

Mitchell described a crisis-services collaborative meeting model that limits the second half of each meeting to case discussion under non-disclosure agreements, which staff say has sped case coordination and reduced duplication among first responders, clinics and resource centers. The county is piloting a community-court project that will take place in a recovery cafe with social-work supports and virtual access for Lopez and Orcas participants.

On school- and early-childhood work, the board heard that 1/10th mental-health-tax funds support community-wellness therapy for uninsured residents, school-based mental-health services, and targeted pilots. One new contract, "Steps 3-to-5," will fund additional mental-health supports for children ages 3 to 5 at $30,000 spread across two years to bridge birth-to-3 services into preschool supports.

Representatives from STEPS, the contracted infant and early childhood provider, described the assessment and treatment framework for children birth to age 5, using the DC:0-5 diagnostic approach. STEPS said it has served 118 children in San Juan County since becoming the county provider in July 2019 and that the county contract was signed Jan. 1; staff said services will be delivered in the home where appropriate and by clinicians who travel to the islands weekly.

A STEPS clinician described an illustrative case in which a child who developed post-surgical PTSD made substantial gains after therapeutic work with a team of occupational therapists and infant mental-health specialists; the case was presented as an example of how home-based, relationship-focused services can improve outcomes.

Board members praised the collaborative models and asked whether regional partners and BHASO funds could backfill some program costs (for example, covering staff time in crisis-collaboration work). Staff said those conversations are ongoing and that BHASO participates in meetings already.

Next steps: contracting with Evergreen Recovery Center is underway; the co-responder pilot will proceed with local oversight and provider monitoring. STEPS staff said they will continue outreach to pediatricians and the hospital district to expand referral pathways. Presenters said they will return with operational updates and early data on service uptake.