[{"_1":2,"_99":-5,"_100":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,75,87],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},"mediaId",6587003,"mediaKeyId","5744775-02406b0f4ce6e6c5cf085bff1602b5c6","parentId",5744775,"title","Portland providers say region lacks psychiatric beds, treatment slots and recovery housing","audioSeconds",6755,"startMs",814000,"endMs",7569000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=5744775-02406b0f4ce6e6c5cf085bff1602b5c6&start=814&end=7569","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/5744775-02406b0f4ce6e6c5cf085bff1602b5c6/thumbnail_814000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6587003/Portland/Multnomah-County/Oregon/Portland-providers-say-region-lacks-psychiatric-beds-treatment-slots-and-recovery-housing","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6587003-a467bd4857f92fd7920cee214494a8f1/orig.mp4?Expires=1770412129&Signature=jT6t749oN9ufYnLv2g-NioflRyLKH6gOda5mRHY9cMKT0rFRlRrwVmZWmoM1jqVJgkvsqXCV-NT3LDT~0s7chjT3aWbYvGWqiicV~8ofrLLB2NnSz-~KROfHMSFGv0zUkz9YCy9b1GkXEOK3v9yY6u2jpsF6yycMYgK1m9~-~bC4uAMYRetZrf~TUAUAVaQfz2N10s-1hp~r1TA6K8uTTn1bPMHKcdEVlpLUlXxO3BK2EblVK0EAFM96k~QSipWU~B0ZxVgnr-ADTQMuhxbpjeM5v5ltDPNSXUFDhd6TzSIhS7n4H5lrQaGmnlvb2xQv2VUksPqqhFFv9gxzzt~R-A__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","City Council of Portland, OR","date","2025-08-21T19:19:28Z","article","At a Community and Public Safety Committee meeting Sept. 9, regional providers told Portland elected officials that the area lacks enough acute psychiatric beds, residential treatment options and recovery housing to meet demand from people with severe behavioral-health conditions and substance use disorders.

Central City Concern President and CEO Dr. Andy Mendenhall said population-level Medicaid claims analysis shows a concentrated cohort driving disproportionate health-system use. “We don’t have enough behavioral health services,” Mendenhall said, and he told councilors the region is short roughly 40–50 acute psychiatric hospital beds, 150–200 secure residential treatment beds for step‑down care, about 1,000 outpatient substance‑use‑disorder treatment slots and roughly 500 transitional recovery housing beds.

Those deficits, Mendenhall said, translate into higher hospital utilization and costs. He said the study found that in 2024 about 8% of adult Medicaid members fell into three diagnostic categories (opioid use disorder, stimulant use disorder and psychosis) yet accounted for roughly 24% of total cost of care and represented a large share of hospital stays. “We are paying to treat the complications of untreated behavioral health conditions,” he said.

Providers and county and city staff described efforts meant to link emergency response to ongoing care. Portland Fire Rescue’s Community Health section (CHAT) operates an overdose response and medication‑for‑opioid‑use‑disorder (MOUD) pilot that offers buprenorphine on scene and arranges same‑day clinic handoffs; Deputy Chief Corey Wilson reported the pilot enrolled 36 people in its initial phase, with the CHAT aftercare team arranging same‑day medical appointments for 56% of participants and warm handoffs to a MOUD clinic for 68%. CHAT said 44% of those pilot clients were placed into shelter and the program’s aftercare averaged about 80 days of engagement per enrolled person.

Fora Health CEO DeBarshi Bajpai, whose provider network includes withdrawal‑management and residential treatment, said demand outstripped available beds during the pandemic and that the state and local investments now coming online take time to expand capacity. “People do want treatment,” Bajpai said, but he warned that expanding demand without workforce and bed capacity will limit near‑term impact.

Mendenhall and other speakers urged coordinated, cross‑agency strategies: better front‑door deflection and triage for people in crisis, more acute psychiatric capacity to decompress hospitals, and more transitional recovery housing so people can leave shelters and remain engaged in outpatient care. Mendenhall described existing collaborations—such as a rapid rehousing program run with the Portland Police Bureau’s behavioral health unit—but said program completion rates for people coming directly from the street remain low and that expanding clinical capacity is critical.

Committee members and panelists discussed next steps including data sharing, pilots to expand referral pathways and continued efforts to match street‑level response with housing and treatment capacity. County and city staff said they are testing expanded outreach and partnerships with Portland Street Response and other first responders to increase warm handoffs into care.

Ending: Speakers emphasized that new legislative changes and local investments are a starting point but said it will take additional beds, workforce and housing to change outcomes for the highest‑acuity people seen in Portland’s overdose and homelessness response.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","Portland City Council Community & Public Safety Committee 09/09/25","oneSentenceSummary","At a Community and Public Safety Committee meeting Sept. 9, regional providers told Portland elected officials that the area lacks enough acute psychiatric beds, residential treatment options and recovery housing to meet demand from people with severe behavioral‑health conditions and substance use disorders.","taxTitle","Portland, Multnomah County, Oregon","taxId",2765,"location","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":76,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":77,"_41":78,"_43":79,"_45":80,"_47":81,"_49":82,"_51":83,"_53":84,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":85,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":86,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},6586994,"County deflection center provides immediate referrals; judges and advocates say longer‑term tracking and capacity remain limited",748,6528000,7276000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=5744775-02406b0f4ce6e6c5cf085bff1602b5c6&start=6528&end=7276","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/5744775-02406b0f4ce6e6c5cf085bff1602b5c6/thumbnail_6528000.jpg","/articles/6586994/Portland/Multnomah-County/Oregon/County-deflection-center-provides-immediate-referrals-judges-and-advocates-say-longerterm-tracking-and-capacity-remain-limited","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6586994-8e22ed5e2e78dc9cf5c9f2fa7e25c1d5/orig.mp4?Expires=1770412129&Signature=RgGMB-iEZzlLcf06qDNPim6Df8laQ4echM0buiVFmRdBh8YrgHfQUH1~3OWcFB998Zfymm2IQ6HiB6eXYUE9KZS5sNq65Psxy1RanEXNx7FCqSZLcOTA9crwIZDch8VXIXh~uXLwao2G57HfYDBkrSyWmwrBD0hcY5ejU-IVtWXiP5SDR5nJ1V8-hDu98V6svFLp5nLvqF5J6FT-NIsqTjbcViNCfgJg5kz~b72fSl78qmo3QOSUE62r5Ym~TCgCQNQfYZBc1MaD8UuecDvfgFrDg-r9hMNH5ESej3ZJh6TnR7SD8YtDtDinvYKhYYrrmVREK0qhqfOuFcPmEbYBMg__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Multnomah County officials described the county’s deflection model on Sept. 9 as an on‑ramp for people encountered by police with small‑amount possession charges to receive an immediate clinical screening, peer support and a care plan. County staff and judges at the Community and Public Safety Committee discussed the program’s early results, how completion is measured and the limits of current follow‑up.

Natalie Amar, Multnomah County’s deflection coordinator, said the program was created under House Bill 4002 and is based at the county’s coordinated care pathway center. In year one, Amar said referrals into deflection were almost entirely from law enforcement; a leadership team with representatives from police, courts, the district attorney’s office and county leadership sets the program’s eligibility and completion rules.

Amar said completion requires a person to receive a care plan at the center and then access a named referral in the care plan within 30 days. The county verifies completion with the receiving provider; Amar emphasized the standard varies with the service—some services are considered completed after an intake and assessment, while others (for example an inpatient stay) require completion of that specific episode of care. She acknowledged a limitation: “That is an option, but it's not mandated. People can only be referred...by law enforcement at this time,” and that the program’s year‑one intake volume was therefore limited by the number of law‑enforcement referrals.

Anthony Jordan, the county’s interim behavioral health director, and Amar said the leadership team is piloting additional pathways including referrals from Portland Street Response and active outreach teams. Jordan noted sobering services were added at the center in April and said return visits to care coordinators are now permitted so people can re‑engage beyond the initial encounter.

County data presented to the committee show several hundred law‑enforcement referrals in the first year and increasing referral volume following targeted missions by police; Amar reported that 87 people accessed a referral within 30 days in the most recent quarterly window and 19 people used new sobering services after they became available in April. County staff cautioned that published completion measures track the initial referral and a provider‑verified first step rather than longitudinal retention past that first episode.

Judge Michael Greenlick, who oversees treatment courts in Multnomah County, described specialized court programs that require repeated judicial oversight and, in many cases, the possibility of significant criminal penalties for noncompliance; those programs have different entry criteria and longer judicial monitoring than deflection. He also noted practical barriers for bringing minor drug offenses into court‑based interventions—high failure‑to‑appear rates, an acute public‑defense shortage and the need for sustained engagement that many unsheltered people cannot reliably meet.

Ending: County staff said pilots to expand referral pathways and additional care coordination resources are being pursued; judges and providers warned that sustained results require more treatment capacity, housing and dedicated follow‑up resources beyond the first referral.","Multnomah County officials told councilors Sept. 9 that the county’s HB 4002 deflection center gives officers an immediate pathway to clinical screening and referrals, but year‑one access was largely limited to law‑enforcement referrals and longer‑term outcome tracking depends on provider verification and varies by service.",{"_33":88,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":89,"_41":90,"_43":91,"_45":92,"_47":93,"_49":94,"_51":95,"_53":96,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":97,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":98,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},6586999,"Portland Police describe expanded bike teams and narcotics investigations to disrupt open‑air drug markets",519,3569000,4088000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=5744775-02406b0f4ce6e6c5cf085bff1602b5c6&start=3569&end=4088","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/5744775-02406b0f4ce6e6c5cf085bff1602b5c6/thumbnail_3569000.jpg","/articles/6586999/Portland/Multnomah-County/Oregon/Portland-Police-describe-expanded-bike-teams-and-narcotics-investigations-to-disrupt-openair-drug-markets","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6586999-0c1b87bc5984b7c05f0d4e5dccafb93b/orig.mp4?Expires=1770412129&Signature=QV-FJ3-aIibmVKi3Lo1id2cDqlk4d5qDGIPSq3RG7wISMGWdW1vLpiX3aXNssBa-xIXkjw3ySlmUXT2FN63dI8XsAklFf4fFROEDpXTt7zkzhn1AvjQD8nm7LzGJkNpt28uU9~RrlHa5GJXgw0f~lvV1Q22mtMbdZHtn7nsLqApqsqRFTVB98BcNlBqYbcUnJ0dc5d9bXmQ1nM7VMrIqSz9Yy-Dqa50L-QeiuhB0VtuocGwc~SX0IKzqhM1CedL~gvQHucsvWxnAj2HpXuJUNlHcAO~t0naoe2QLI8eD1e5kP~uo7hXCqRwTmNTzfsiyxn-y3XOlllV5IkmI1eSGSA__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Portland Police Bureau commanders told the City Council’s Community and Public Safety Committee on Sept. 9 that the bureau has shifted more resources to street‑level enforcement and deflection to reduce visible drug markets and associated retail theft and assaults.

Commander Brian Hughes, who oversees Central Precinct, said the bureau increased downtown bike teams from four to 10 and prioritized neighborhood response officers to operate in high‑complaint areas. “The goal is simply not arrest numbers, but to disrupt the dealers and driving disorder while still connecting users to deflection and services,” Hughes said.

Hughes and other bureau presenters described an operational balance the precinct sought in 2024 and 2025: targeted missions to interrupt street‑level dealer activity and concurrent pathways for nonviolent users to enter deflection or treatment. Hughes said the bureau’s focus areas for 2025 include reducing visible drug use, disrupting dealer networks and sustaining deflection opportunities. He said some recent missions produced immediate results in downtown visibility and referrals to services.

Lieutenant Rob Quick, who supervises narcotics and organized‑crime investigations, described the bureau’s investigative posture: a six‑person interdiction team that follows investigative leads to identify suppliers, and a death‑investigation track that responds to overdose fatalities. Quick said fentanyl “remains our overwhelming problem,” described a shift toward powder fentanyl and poly‑drug contamination, and reported more than 40 active overdose death investigations in the bureau’s caseload. He cited a seizure of roughly 25 pounds of fentanyl that the U.S. attorney estimated removed about 5.5 million potential lethal doses from circulation; Quick also noted recent seizures of illegally possessed firearms connected to drug investigations.

Business owners from the Central East Side told councilors the visible open‑air drug markets have hurt downtown livability and commerce. Amber Jobe, owner at Skeleton Key Auditorium, said her business experienced repeated thefts, broken windows and a period she described as “the epicenter of the open air fentanyl market,” and that staff now must station someone at the door to protect customers. “We don’t feel safe,” Jobe said. Hazel Valdez, managing director of Literary Arts, said bike officers made an immediate difference when present: “Encampments are dispersed before they grow; dealers are detained, and the overall environment improves significantly.”

Councilors pressed bureau leaders on how to quantify the net public‑health impact of interdiction. Quick said interdiction and deflection are one part of a larger, multi‑agency response and pointed to a 28% year‑to‑date reduction in overdose deaths reported by police statistics (249 deaths year‑to‑date in the bureau’s count), while cautioning investigators cannot claim interdiction alone is responsible for the trend.

Ending: PPB officials said the bureau will continue expanding the central‑precinct model into East and North precincts, maintain targeted missions and pair enforcement with deflection pathways; business owners urged more consistent sworn presence in high‑impact blocks to improve livability and safety.","Portland Police Bureau officials told the Community and Public Safety Committee on Sept. 9 they increased downtown bike units and prioritized targeted missions that pair enforcement and deflection; business owners described visible open‑air markets and requested more consistent patrols.","actionData","errors"]

Article not found

Portland providers say region lacks psychiatric beds, treatment slots and recovery housing

County deflection center provides immediate referrals; judges and advocates say longer‑term tracking and capacity remain limited

Portland Police describe expanded bike teams and narcotics investigations to disrupt open‑air drug markets