Legislative Update from Cascadia – Feb. 2024

On Monday, February 5, Oregon legislators headed back to Salem for a short, 35-day session. And with the start of this year’s session underway, Cascadia Health is tracking new legislation and advocating for bills that affect our day-to-day work. A clear priority for legislators this year is addressing housing, substance use, and behavioral health issues facing communities across the state.  

Dozens of bills introduced this session have implications for these priority areas, including House Bill 4092 which creates a task force to study and recommend solutions for administrative burdens that exist in statute, rule, or contracts that impact the public behavioral health system. 

As a community mental health organization, we see firsthand how administrative burdens disrupt service delivery and negatively impact the health and care of those we serve. Cascadia has found that the volume of required documents delays our ability to intervene in a timely manner, exacerbating access issues for our clients. In addition, we also see how excessive burden contributes to burnout among our clinicians, resulting in turnover of experienced staff who are best equipped to address the complex needs within community mental health.

Overall, Cascadia is currently tracking 35 bills. This includes Senate Bill 1594, which would create a task force to make recommendations for improving the safety of behavioral health workers. Safety is a top priority for Cascadia, and we welcome the fact that this bill sets aside some immediate funds, as well as recognizes the need for the task force to fund the recommendations it puts forward. 

Other priority bills we’re tracking include HB 4002 (which includes partial drug recriminalization as well as the development of a “deflection” program for those found to be in violation, policy changes to help increase treatment access, and a path for expanding Oregon’s CCBHC program), and HB 4001 (which would establish a task force on specialty courts). 

We will continue to provide updates as the session proceeds.