Clinical Supervision BHWI Expansion Round 2

The Oregon Health Authority (OHA) has issued a Request for Grant Proposal (RFGP) for the Behavioral Health Workforce Initiative (BHWI) Clinical Supervision Expansion Round 2, targeting Marion County and the City of Salem. The procurement seeks to provide grants to licensed behavioral health professionals, including psychologists, marriage and family therapists, professional counselors, and clinical social workers, to offer supervised clinical experience to associates. Key objectives include establishing an equitable behavioral health system, breaking down systemic barriers, and increasing access for historically underserved communities, with a specific focus on advancing health equity, trauma-informed care, and anti-racism. Proposers must demonstrate how they will increase supervisory capacity, provide culturally and linguistically specific services, and serve underrepresented populations. The evaluation criteria include alignment with BHWI values, addressing social determinants of health, program narrative quality, fund oversight, sustainability, and budget effectiveness. Key dates include proposal posting on October 4, 2022, informational webinars on October 10 and 13, a question deadline of October 13, and a proposal submission deadline of November 4, 2022, at 3:00 PM PST, with an anticipated award notice on November 30, 2022.

The RFGP is open to private non-profit and for-profit behavioral health sites, tribal behavioral health programs, and urban Indian health programs. Preference will be given to proposals that focus on increasing the diversity of the behavioral health workforce and serving historically underserved communities. No specific set-aside designations for disadvantaged enterprises were explicitly mentioned in the documents. The Notice of Award indicates that several organizations, including Arise Counseling Services LLC, Barcelona Counseling, and Mangata Wellness, were selected to receive grants. Grant award amounts are tiered: up to $300,000 for large employers with 50 or more clinicians, $200,000 for other behavioral health organizations, and $150,000 for individual clinical supervisors. Funding is provided through federal funds from the Coronavirus State Fiscal Recovery Fund and can be used to compensate new supervisors who are bicultural, bilingual, or provide culturally specific services, as well as to offer training for clinical staff to become supervisors or build clinical competencies. The grant period is up to two years from the award date, with funding aimed at supplementing new initiatives to expand culturally responsive clinical supervision.