Newberg SD 29J hears school-based health center update as Oregon law will require contraceptive access July 1

The Newberg SD 29J Board of Directors on June 9 heard a detailed report on the district’s Providence-supported school-based health center, including operational partners, clinical services, utilization and how staff will implement a state law change taking effect July 1.

Dana introduced Dr. Jerry Turguson, who described the center’s community partners — George Fox University (clinical psychology interns), Yamhill County Health and Human Services, Lutheran Community Services, Providence Medical Group and Providence Foundation, Pacific University and the Austin Family Foundation — and summarized clinical services: on-site physical health providers (reported as available five days a week, roughly 12 p.m. to 5 p.m.), diagnosis and care for minor injuries, sports and well-child visits, immunizations, chronic-disease management, and a range of behavioral-health services including individual and group therapy, family-based work, diagnostic assessment and substance-use interventions.

Dr. Turguson said the center completed 1,336 visits between Sept. 1, 2025 and June 7, 2026, and that 266 of those visits were for Newberg students. She reported 198 unique students engaged in therapy through the center this year and described the range of clinical presentations she said staff see most often: suicidality, non‑suicidal self‑injury, trauma-related diagnoses, depression, anxiety, disordered eating, substance use and neurodevelopmental concerns. On clinician-reported acuity, she said roughly 35% of her active cases were high risk, 40% moderate and 25% low risk; she also said a majority of the patients she supervises had some level of reported suicidality across visits. All of those clinical figures were presented as internal program data by the school-based health center staff.

Dr. Turguson told the board that a change in Oregon law effective July 1 requires school-based health centers located on high-school campuses to provide condoms and at least one additional method of contraception, and that Providence’s ethics and legal teams have prepared implementation policy. She emphasized the district clinic will follow the new state requirement while continuing practices that encourage parental engagement: contraceptives will be provided only during a healthcare-provider visit, kept in secure locations within the center, and offered in the context of clinical decision-making with family engagement encouraged when possible. She also clarified that Oregon law allows certain adolescents to consent to care and to request suppression of insurance explanations-of-benefits; the clinic said it has not routinely used billing suppression in this setting and that staff will research notification procedures for adolescents who have that legal option.

Board members asked about who is eligible for services, insurance coverage and how students learn about the center. Staff said the center is open to Newberg school district students and families, that Providence accepts a broad range of insurance plans (with a continuing effort to resolve exceptions such as Kaiser Permanente), and that outreach includes classroom visits, tours during freshman orientation and inclusion of center information in school and district communications. The presenters noted peer-support staff (adults with lived-experience certification, not student peers) serve as service extenders, and that a relocated resource room has provided an accessible entry point — staff said the resource room had recorded 3,728 visits and has helped route students into therapy and other supports.

The board also heard about sustainability planning and outreach: staff said they are developing a sustainability plan, will increase clarity about services and eligibility, and plan an open house this fall to raise awareness.

The board did not take any formal action on the school-based health center at the meeting. Board members commended staff for program transparency and for coordinated work with community partners.

Ending: Staff said they will continue implementation work on the state law, refine communication about billing-suppression rights, and pursue outreach and sustainability planning in coming months.