Our Work
At its core, Fourfront Contributor is a coalition that utilizes its collective size and expertise to improve the health of individuals, communities, and the systems that serve them. By engaging key stakeholders, including lawmakers, clients, payers, and providers, we can drive impactful change across the behavioral health system.
Advocacy
A large part of our work as Fourfront Contributor is centered around engaging lawmakers to advocate for sound policies and necessary funding. Currently, we’re supporting several short-term and long-term solutions to create a sustainable community behavioral health system. These solutions are focused on two priorities – fixing systemic funding issues and addressing the record workforce shortage.
1. Workforce Supports
Addressing the most critical issue in community behavioral health
Longstanding systemic funding issues have resulted in a major shortage of qualified, available staff. Based on the current funding model, providers are unable to offer competitive compensation, leaving most without the staff needed to deliver much-needed services. We must take action to avoid further destabilizing core mental health services and pursue solutions that will help recruit and retain the staff who are crucial to meet our community needs.
Addressing the most critical issue in community behavioral health
Longstanding systemic funding issues have resulted in a major shortage of qualified, available staff. Providers are unable to offer competitive compensation, leaving most without the staff needed to deliver much-needed services. We must take action to avoid further destabilizing core mental health services and pursue solutions that will help recruit and retain the staff who are crucial to meet our community needs.
Leveraging the CCBHC model to ensure sustainability of mental health services
Certified Community Behavioral Health Clinics (CCBHC) is a nationally proven model for sustainably funding mental health and substance use treatment. Based on demonstrated success in multiple states, the CCBHC model will enable providers in WA to focus on whole person care, allowing us to build a better continuum to adequately serve people the current workforce crisis that is limiting access to care, ensure compensation for services, and reduce reliance on other community resources such as hospitals, jails, and schools in responding to behavioral health needs.
Supporting solutions to maximize WA behavioral health system
Fourfront Contributor member organizations are at the forefront of advocating for several top-priority solutions to expand access to behavioral healthcare, meet growing needs and keep our communities healthy. To learn more about these solutions and stay up to date on key issues, subscribe to our newsletter below.
2. CCBHC Adoption
Leveraging the CCBHC model to ensure sustainability of mental health services
3. Other Priorities
Supporting solutions to maximize WA behavioral health system
Innovation
By weaving together the collective size, experience and thought leadership of four of the largest community behavioral health providers in Washington state, Fourfront Contributor can help to conduct population-level research, as well as test pilot programs and evidence-based models for care to evaluate effectiveness.
Collaboration
With a footprint that spans from the Puget Sound to the Inland Northwest, Fourfront Contributor is primed to offer population-level expertise to health policy and nonprofit partners, among others, interested in exploring and validating strategies for improving behavioral healthcare in Washington.
Our member organizations are on the front lines of meeting behavioral health needs across the state and are eager to lend valuable insight to inform the process of developing and implementing practical and scalable solutions to improve access to care and delivery of services.
Health Home Services
Currently, Fourfront Contributor is proud to offer Health Home services in Northwest Washington, Central and Southwest Washington, and Spokane through contracts with local managed care organizations (MCOs).
These services are focused on delivering healthcare and social services to Medicaid-eligible individuals with physical, mental, and behavioral health conditions. By integrating primary care and behavioral health services, we can reduce the reliance on hospitals and other local emergency service providers, and promote positive outcomes for clients.
Get in touch with us today!
We welcome the opportunity to collaborate with partners eager to drive solutions to improve the behavioral health system and meet the growing needs of community members.