Oregon’s Medicaid insurers are making a significant investment — $25 million — to provide more beds and psychiatrists for youths with the most intense needs.
The investment came at the request of Gov. Tina Kotek. The insurers, known as coordinated care organizations in Oregon’s unique Medicaid model, collectively made record profits during the pandemic, even as other parts of the health care system struggled with inflation, financial losses and service cuts.
“Oregon needs more treatment options to help young people in our state who are struggling with serious behavioral health issues,” Kotek said in a press release Thursday.
“The state and CCOs developed a plan to reinvest surplus Medicaid dollars into Oregon communities, and this partnership will support youth behavioral health projects that we desperately need.”
Related: Two new residential projects will expand behavioral health and addiction treatment in Portland area
The governor’s office and CCOs have identified four projects that they said serve youth, meet the greatest need, and are geographically diverse. The investment are as follows:
- $13.2 million to the Trillium Family Services Project located in the Portland Metro area to spur new psychiatric residential treatment beds.
- $7.5 million to the Adapt Project, based in Douglas County. This investment will support a new campus currently underway in the region that will provide treatment beds.
- $2.3 million to the Looking Glass Project in Lane County to expand psychiatric bed capacity.
- $2 million to Community Counseling Solutions Project in Morrow County. This investment will close a funding gap for new psychiatric beds.
Oregon has fewer inpatient beds available for youth with the most serious psychiatric needs than it did 20 years ago. Some experts say changes in Oregon’s Medicaid payment model contributed to that decline.
As a result, children in crisis often end up boarding in hospital emergency departments or in general pediatric hospital wings and struggle to find specialized care.
Related: Oregon kids in crisis are not getting the help they need
Some Oregon children on Medicaid even need to travel to other states for psychiatric care, according to a report this week from the Oregon Health Authority’s ombuds program.
The ombuds report found that from July 1, 2021, through June 30, 2023, 1,923 Oregon Health Plan members under age 18 visited an emergency department with mental health concerns as their primary reason for the visit.
Nationally, there’s a lack of community resources to care for children at risk of suicide and other major mental health and behavioral problems. In August, three of the top national medical associations, including the American Academy of Pediatrics, published a joint statement on increasing numbers of children seeking care for mental health in emergency departments and a lack of support for them after they’re discharged.
Related: Oregon faces holes in mental health services
If you or someone you know may be considering suicide, contact the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline by dialing 988, or the Crisis Text Line by texting HOME to 741741.