01/27/2026 Bridge Coalition Meeting Notes

by | Mar 2, 2026 | Bridge Coalition Meeting Notes | 0 comments

Meeting Notes: Bridge Coalition Meeting on January 27th

Opening Comments (Sarah): 

  • Sarah filled in for Jim
  • Introductions via chat were done
  • A broad overview of NorthStar Advocates Mission and purpose was discussed,
  • Focusing on return to community: safe housing, relationships, and supporting young adults facing unaccompanied homelessness interests and passions.

The Bridge Scope and Vision (Mayauna): 

  • High rate of return to homelessness for young people exiting inpatient care,
  • Cross-system information sharing and training,
  • Developing Return To Community Plan,
  • Developing opportunities for systems reform.

January Mentimeter Pilot: Presented by: Sarah Spier, NorthStar Advocates

A brief, anonymous Mentimeter pilot was launched during the January Bridge Coalition meeting to introduce a new engagement tool and gather early, high-level system input. The Bridge Coalition introduced Mentimeter as an interactive engagement tool to support:

  • Anonymous participation during Coalition meetings
  • Real-time feedback and discussion prompts
  • Early input to help shape the Youth & Young Adult Behavioral Health Summit Series
  • A low-barrier way for partners to share honest perspectives
  • Informing planning for upcoming Summits and Coalition focus areas

Mentimeter is being used intentionally for high-level system feedback and engagement, not for collecting personal or protected health information.

Summit Alignment & Focus Areas

The January pilot centered on themes that align directly with the Youth & Young Adult Behavioral Health Summit Series, which NorthStar Advocates will be leading in partnership with the OHY Y4Y Board. These areas will guide Coalition learning and Summit content over the coming year:

  • Neurodivergence
  • Trauma-informed and trauma-aware practices
  • Individualized recovery approaches
  • Life skill development

Key Themes from the Mentimeter Engagement

Shared Definitions & Understanding

  • Participants shared a wide range of definitions for neurodivergence, reflecting both clinical and lived-experience perspectives.
  • Responses emphasized differences in brain functioning, executive functioning, and cognitive processing rather than deficits, reinforcing the importance of strength-based language.

Trauma-Informed Practice

  • Participant input reflected mixed perspectives on whether there is a shared, clear understanding of what trauma-informed care looks like in practice across systems.
  • Responses highlighted gaps between policy and funding requirements and truly relationship-centered, trauma-aware implementation.

Preparation for Adulthood

  • Input signaled that many young adults are not consistently receiving practical preparation for adulthood through current services, including housing navigation, budgeting, wellness, employment, and relationship-building.

Individualization & Choice

  • Engagement emphasized the importance of individualized recovery pathways, flexibility, and readiness-based services.
  • Participants reinforced the need to center youth voice and choice, rather than relying on one-size-fits-all approaches.

System Priorities

When asked what areas need the most attention (1–2 words), common themes included:

  • Housing
  • Life skills
  • Unaccompanied Minors
  • Staff Caring
  • Inpatient SUD
  • Universal Healthcare
  • Case management and follow-up
  • Voice and choice
  • And more 

SHB 1929 Bridge Housing Updates:

Friends of Youth, Kirkland – Bridge Pointe (Blanca Gonzalez, Manager of Youth Haven & Bridge Pointe Housing)

Blanca Gonzalez shared updates on the Bridge Pointe program, noting strong early demand and positive outcomes for young people served.

  • The first Bridge Pointe house is currently at full capacity, serving four youth with one additional intake pending. The program has an active waitlist, and staff continue to hear consistently that there is a strong need for additional beds.
  • The team is seeing a decrease in length of stay, driven by a focused effort to move youth into permanent housing on a faster timeline. At the same time, transitions remain highly individualized and case-by-case.
  • There has been significant interest from service providers, with an increasing number of calls inquiring about the program and referral pathways.
  • The second Bridge Pointe house is not yet open for referrals, but the team anticipates opening it within the next few weeks.
  • One of the biggest areas of growth has been increased movement into housing, particularly through Coordinated Entry, resulting in more opportunities and shorter timeframes.
  • A young person shared that it has been especially meaningful to have a safe place to return to for aftercare and check-ins following treatment.
  • The program has begun exploring housing options outside of the county to expand opportunities for youth.
  • Bridge Pointe is working closely with the YYAHRT team and expressed strong appreciation for their coordination, as well as ongoing collaboration with DDA.
  • The team is also connecting and making referrals to Excelsior Wellness when appropriate and noted what an amazing job they are doing with their Life Point program.
  • Ongoing challenges include youth entering the program with existing debt, student loans, collections, and prior landlord issues, which can create barriers during housing background checks. The program has been using flexible funding to help address some of these challenges.
  • Staff are continuing to support youth motivation and readiness to transition, as some young people express a desire to remain beyond the 90-day period. The team focuses on helping youth feel confident, prepared, and supported in moving to their next best housing option.
  • Bridge Pointe gathers regular feedback from young people through community meetings. One youth shared that he sees Bridge Pointe as an opportunity for a new life, and expressed a wish that more programs like this existed so others with similar experiences could benefit.
  • Overall, Bridge Pointe is emerging as a meaningful and impactful pathway for young people transitioning out of treatment and into stable housing.

Excelsior Wellness, Spokane – Bridge Housing (Dylan Ramirez, Program Manager of TAY Services)

Dylan Ramirez provided updates on Excelsior Wellness’ Bridge Housing program and partnership efforts.

  • The program continues to work on filling available spaces and strengthening referral pathways.
  • Staff are actively engaging with partners, including Volunteers of America (VOA) and Frontier Behavioral Health, and are building relationships with new substance use disorder (SUD) providers to expand referrals.
  • The program recently had several successful participants exits, reflecting positive progress and stability outcomes.
  • One notable success included supporting a young person from a Montana Tribe, assisting with documentation and funding, and helping the individual enroll in Spokane Community College (SCC).
  • The team shared excitement about the young people currently being served and expressed optimism about continued growth and opportunity within the program.
  • The update concluded with a broader Coalition discussion focused on ideas for strengthening referral networks, building partnerships, and increasing awareness to support higher utilization.

HCA Presentation (Part 2): Supporting Youth & Young Adult Housing Stability through Partnerships: Presenter: Rachel Baxter, Emerging Adult Behavioral Health Stable Housing Policy Lead, Health Care Authority (HCA)

Rachel emphasized that effective transition planning across systems of care is critical to young people’s immediate safety, long-term stability, and overall life outcomes. Many young people enter behavioral health systems due to an initial trauma, and without coordinated treatment, stabilization services, and safe housing at discharge, they are at increased risk of:

  • Secondary trauma caused by system exits without stability
  • Re-entry into emergency rooms
  • Contact with the criminal justice system
  • Disrupted brain development and long-term health impacts

This framing underscores the urgency of securing safe and stable housing upon discharge from public systems, particularly residential behavioral health settings.

Prevention & Early Supports (Statewide)

Rachel highlighted that prevention resources exist across the continuum, regardless of where someone is on their recovery journey. Rather than reviewing each program individually, HCA encourages familiarity with the broader prevention landscape, including:

  • Substance use prevention campaigns (college students, underage drinking, opioid prevention)
  • Community Prevention & Wellness Initiatives (CPWIs), which implement evidence-based and promising programs statewide
  • Community-based organizations delivering prevention, intervention, and early support programming
  • School-based Student Assistance Professionals (SAPs), a multi-tiered prevention and intervention model in middle and high schools supported through HCA–OSPI partnerships

These prevention efforts are intended to reduce later housing instability and system involvement by supporting early engagement and stabilization.

Research Highlight: Youth Exiting Systems of Care

Rachel referenced the March 2024 DSHS Research & Data Analysis report on youth exiting systems of care:

  • 69% of youth who became homeless within 12 months of a systems-of-care exit had a prior history of homelessness
  • Residential behavioral health facilities accounted for 13% of exits leading to homelessness

While a smaller percentage overall, this group represents a high-risk population where the absence of safe housing can negate the benefits of treatment received.

Residential behavioral health settings referenced include:

  • Acute care hospitals and Evaluation & Treatment facilities
  • Children’s Long-Term Inpatient Program (CLIP)
  • Western and Eastern State Hospitals
  • Long-Term Civil Commitment (LTCC) facilities

Policy & Systems Coordination Updates

Early Insurance Reinstatement (Juvenile Justice)

HCA and DCYF have implemented a process to unsuspend Medicaid 30 days prior to discharge from juvenile justice systems. This allows for:

  • Earlier identification of housing needs
  • Ongoing discharge conversations
  • More realistic and comprehensive transition planning

DCYF Juvenile Rehabilitation has also hired a discharge liaison to work directly with transitional-age youth on re-entry planning, including housing, prior to exiting the system.

HB 1860: Discharge Notification & Housing Coordination

Effective January 1, 2023, HB 1860 established new discharge coordination requirements for inpatient behavioral health settings and Managed Care Organizations (MCOs).

Key elements include:

  • Providers must notify MCOs at least 24 hours prior to discharge (or same day for AMA discharges)
  • Notification must include housing instability or homelessness risk
  • MCOs and providers must collaborate on housing-related discharge planning

MCO responsibilities include:

  • Screening inpatient behavioral health hospitalizations for housing risk
  • Collaborating with providers through utilization management
  • Supporting housing applications and connection to stable housing upon discharge

Provider responsibilities include:

  • Identifying housing status and instability risk at admission
  • Including housing needs in admission and continued stay requests
  • Notifying and collaborating with MCOs when additional discharge support is needed

HCA contracts with MCOs are required to include performance measures tied to:

  • Stable housing outcomes
  • Reduced emergency, hospital, and justice system involvement
  • Improved health, wellness, and quality of life
  • Reductions in population-level health disparities

HCA Housing & Transition Resources Referenced (Pages 19–21)

Rachel highlighted a wide range of housing, behavioral health, and transition resources available across Washington State, including:

  • DBHR Homeless Services Provider Map
  • Pathways to Housing
  • Discharge Planner’s Toolkit
  • The Bridge Housing Program (Ages 18–24) – SHB 1929
  • Friends of Youth
  • Excelsior Wellness
  • PATH (Projects for Assistance in Transition from Homelessness)
  • Peer Pathfinder
  • Forensic PATH
  • HARPS (Housing and Recovery through Peer Services)
  • Forensic HARPS
  • Oxford Houses of Washington
  • Recovery Residences
  • Foundational Community Supports (FCS)
  • FCS – Supportive Housing
  • FCS – Supportive Employment
  • Becoming a Wellpoint FCS Provider
  • FCS Provider Map
  • Apple Health & Homes (AHAH)
  • Community Behavioral Health Rental Assistance Program (18+)
  • Youth & Young Adult Housing Response Team (YYAHRT)
  • YYAHRT Resources One-Pager
  • YYAHRT Office Hours
  • DCYF Community Housing Programs & Resources
  • 1580 Children in Crisis FAQ
  • Lake Burien Transitional Facility (DDCS)
  • Lake Burien Transitional Facility – Referral
  • Lake Burien Transitional Facility – Application
  • Lake Burien Transitional Facility – Monthly Presentation Information
  • Kids’ Mental Health Washington
  • Youth Navigator Program
  • YouthNet
  • Mobile Response & Stabilization Services for Youth
  • Family Reconciliation Services (DCYF)
  • Office of Homeless Youth (OHY)
  • OHY Provider List
  • Homelessness Prevention & Diversion Fund (HPDF)
  • Youth Diversion Infrastructure Project (YDIP)
  • Coordinated Entry (CE) Sites
  • Washington Housing Authorities
  • Washington Homeless Shelter Directory
  • Hutton Settlement (Spokane, WA)
  • LifePoint Excelsior Wellness (Spokane, WA)
  • Beth’s Place (Longview, WA)
  • Level Up Seattle (Seattle, WA)
  • Washington Youth Academy (Kitsap, WA)

Rachel highlighted in depth the HCA Discharge Planner’s Toolkit as a key resource for providers and discharge planners, noting it is particularly helpful for:

  • Identifying housing options prior to discharge
  • Understanding program eligibility
  • Connecting individuals to recovery-supportive housing

Housing Program Landscape & Community Resources

Rachel provided an overview of the wide range of youth and young adult housing programs across Washington, including:

  • Street outreach and drop-in services
  • Emergency shelters and HOPE Centers
  • Crisis Residential Centers (CRC)
  • Transitional Living Programs (TLP)
  • Independent Youth Housing Programs
  • Rapid Rehousing (YHDP)

She also highlighted the importance of:

  • Flexible funding programs such as HPDF and YDIP

Bringing It All Together: Practical Next Steps

Rachel closed with a systems-informed framework for supporting youth and young adults:

  • Notify MCOs early about housing instability
  • Engage in ongoing care coordination and case management
  • Center youth voice through diversion conversations (“What do you want?”)
  • Explore family, natural supports, and flexible funding
  • Connect to behavioral health, education, employment, and housing supports
  • Use tools such as the Discharge Planner’s Toolkit and Return to Community–style planning approaches to ensure holistic, youth-centered transitions

This summary reflects Part 2 of the Health Care Authority (HCA) presentation, beginning on page 14 of the PowerPoint titled “Supporting Youth & Young Adult Housing Stability through Partnerships.”

Community Updates: 

  • No updates

Closing Comments:  

  • Sarah closed the meeting and thanked everyone for their support and active participation in this work, and reminded the group the next meeting will be on February 24th.

Sarah Spier
Author: Sarah Spier