FILE - Health Navigator Tamara Camacho helps people enroll in health insurance and other benefits over the phone at a Community Health Works office in Sacramento on Thursday, Jan 25, 2024.
Kate Wolffe / CapRadio
Many parts of Oregon lack mental health care providers, especially in rural counties.
The report builds on a statewide behavioral health workforce assessment from last year. That assessment found a critical shortage of mental health providers, especially in rural counties.
Oregon’s First Lady, Aimee Kotek Wilson, chaired the Behavioral Health Talent Council. She said the council brought together experts to build on the assessment’s recommendations.
“It was pulling together all of those voices on that 22-member council, and having that diverse expertise that could really create the action plans that would make a difference,” said Kotek Wilson.
The council’s report outlines strategies for building a better workforce. That includes increasing pay and creating more opportunities for career advancement.
There are 17 action plans and 74 total strategies underneath those plans. The action plans are divided into categories like recruitment and retention, compensation, and licensing.
House Bill 4083 is the first bill to incorporate some of these recommendations, like streamlining the credentialing process for providers. It recently passed out of a Senate committee.
“It looks at removing administrative burden, because people are crushed with paperwork,” said Kotek Wilson. “And the more that they get to spend time with clients, the more likely they are to stay in the field.”
Retaining workers is a priority in the report, since keeping people in their current jobs is a lot easier and cheaper than training new workers.
Kotek Wilson said because the plan was commissioned by the governor, it’s not going to be ignored.
“There is an opportunity for the governor to choose recommendations, and then work with state agencies,” she said. “We also had those state agencies at the table to be a part of creating these solutions. So there’s a level of buy in here that is really exciting. We had licensing boards that sat with us. We had frontline providers that sat with us. And so there was a level of agreement around what these recommendations are.”
Kotek Wilson said this report will serve as a baseline for measuring progress in addressing the workforce shortage. She said the governor plans to publish an annual report detailing the progress made.
Roman Battaglia is a reporter with Jefferson Public Radio.
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