Healthcare is at a crossroads. Care teams and patients are caught in a “perfect storm” of shifting government priorities, workforce shortages, administrative burdens, siloed care journeys and rising costs. These pressures compound, leading to delayed reimbursements, overburdened emergency departments and closures, creating greater risk to patients’ lives and straining fee-for-service and value-based care models alike.

For years, we’ve been adding weight to a system already at a breaking point.

• 30% of healthcare spending is consumed by administrative costs — dollars going to paperwork and fragmentation instead of care.
• By 2028, we’ll be short more than 100,000 healthcare workers, stretching an already thin workforce even further.
• At the same time, premiums are rising twice as fast as hospital prices, creating affordability challenges for health plans, providers and the individuals they serve.

Layer onto this the converging behavioral health crisis, where one in five^[1] individuals live with an underlying severe mental or behavioral health condition, and the current status quo becomes truly unsustainable. These individuals are ~3.5 times more expensive to treat^[2] and nearly 20% more likely to rely on the emergency department^[3]. High-need, high-cost populations, such as those with physical and behavioral health challenges, represent a high-priority focus area as an opportunity to target improving whole-person care and driving sustainable financial and care outcomes across the system.

The opportunity is clear: if health systems can integrate care, share real-time data and break down silos, we can collectively change this trajectory.

Bamboo Health’s The Grove Leadership Summit in Charlotte brought together clients and partners nationwide to focus on advancing connected, intelligent care. Leaders explored how collaboration, care journey technology and real-time insights can help reach vulnerable patients sooner, coordinate care more effectively and deliver measurable results for their communities.

Throughout the event, conversations centered on a shared goal: reducing unnecessary utilization, improving outcomes and containing costs while keeping patients and families at the heart of every innovation.

Across The Grove sessions and panels, leaders agreed on three key areas that will define the next chapter of connected care in the year ahead:

1. Patient journeys are evolving with the rise of behavioral health needs. Through scalable technology-enabled solutions like Bamboo Bridge®, clients can successfully access unified data and care, improving outcomes for those with mental health and substance use disorders. These patients can often be high utilizers and generate more expensive health costs, but real change is possible when you can intervene with real-time care navigation at clinicians’ fingertips and streamline their coordination workflows. With Bamboo Bridge, organizations can quickly gain insight into patient needs, assess those individuals, perform clinical triage, determine the appropriate level of care and get them to that care as soon as possible. Within Bamboo Bridge, our navigators can match patients to the right treatment provider in their area, follow them through their care journey, close care gaps and deliver improved outcomes. Privia Medical Group Georgia shared promising early results, including reducing 80-day referral delays to just weeks and a 5x increase in patients keeping their first appointments.
2. Physical and behavioral health integration is key to successful whole-person care initiatives in 2026 and beyond, regardless of whether you’re in fee-for-service or value-based care. For too long, our healthcare system has treated physical and behavioral health as separate entities. The result has been predictable: fragmented care, avoidable ED visits, coverage gaps and unsustainable costs. While fee-for-service is squeezed by low-margin utilization, value-based care is sinking under uncontrolled, preventable use. Care teams often lack the necessary documentation and insights to secure resources and invest in proactive, preventive care. The truth is simple: the system isn’t working, no matter the model. Integration is the only path forward.
3. Engaging partnerships across the healthcare ecosystem is the key to expanding access to care while improving a patient’s overall care journey.  Executives agreed that data alone doesn’t improve care; collaboration and deeper insight do. Engaged healthcare networks rely on shared goals and open lines of communication between hospitals, behavioral health organizations, pharmacies, free clinics, social-service agencies, and county and state health departments. Even with technology, it takes a village to deliver the proper care at the right time for high-risk patient populations. Collaboration remains the foundation of progress. One panelist reflected, “I can do things you cannot; you can do things I cannot. But together, we can do great things.”

None of us can weather this storm alone. It requires local and state government health agencies, health plans and providers working together and leveraging technology to successfully change the direction of healthcare.

To learn more about how Bamboo Health can help solve today’s health challenges, contact us today.

 

 

^[1] https://www.nami.org/about-mental-illness/mental-health-by-the-numbers/

^[2] https://www.milliman.com/en/insight/How-do-individuals-with-behavioral-health-conditions-contribute-to-physical

^[3] https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamanetworkopen/fullarticle/2707424

County health departments nationwide are at the center of two historic funding opportunities: opioid settlement dollars and Rural Health Transformation investments. Together, these resources allow local and state governments to address urgent behavioral health and opioid-related needs by modernizing systems to improve long-term health outcomes. To make the most of this moment, county leaders need strategies that build accountability, leverage technology and create sustainable infrastructure.

Here’s how counties can leverage new funding streams to align intended outcomes with real-world impact.

• Conduct Needs Assessments With Credible Data: Healthcare providers often struggle with incomplete patient information. Without access to prior treatments, test results or medication histories, they risk duplication, inefficiency or missed opportunities for early intervention. New funding opportunities should leverage Needs Assessments based on local data to ensure counties align funding with the highest-need areas, such as supporting vulnerable populations and improving access to substance use care. Ongoing tracking of this data will also be vital for adhering to each program’s focus on evidence-based interventions. Counties will need to implement the tools and systems to scale their proposed strategies, especially for high-need populations that typically aren’t captured across disparate systems
• Prioritize Evidence-Based Strategies With Real-Time, Closed-Loop Referrals: To achieve measurable outcomes, counties can prioritize evidence-based programs like expanding access to medication-assisted treatment and supporting crisis response systems with closed-loop referrals, predictive analytics and AI-powered decision support. By tracking the referral from initiation to completion, closed-loop referrals foster a more coordinated and responsive ecosystem that meets the needs of vulnerable community members. Real-time facility availability, two-way digital communication, data analytics and clinical decision support all help providers get patients the care they need when needed.
• Strengthen the Behavioral Health Workforce and Reduce Provider Burden: Provider burnout and workforce shortages threaten the stability of health systems, especially in rural communities. Counties can use settlement and transformation funds to recruit and retain behavioral health professionals internally or with external staffing support. For example, Opioid Settlement Funds have an explicit principle of involving community members in solutions, emphasizing the fact that ‘programs with a diverse workforce of staff, supervisors, and peers are more likely to provide relatable and effective services’. The Rural Health Transformation Program also states a goal for states to expand workforce development. In addition, with a broader emphasis on evidence-based interventions, especially for youth, care teams may need to invest further in expanding their on-the-ground workforce to meet such goals. And while workforce expansion will be critical in the future, another way to alleviate the burden on existing providers is to invest in digital solutions that streamline administrative workflows, such as automating referrals, reducing documentation burdens and improving care coordination to free up providers to spend more time with patients. By addressing workforce capacity and technology efficiency, counties create a more resilient care system. Bamboo Bridge® is one way providers and community organizations can see improved behavioral health care follow-up with less administrative burden through the support of external care navigators that can easily integrate into existing workflows.
• Build Long-Term Infrastructure and Measure Impact: Short-term funding must be used to create lasting impact. One strategy counties can benefit from is investing in a robust crisis management system that expedites treatment for those in need. “No wrong door” access for care is essential for counties because it ensures that individuals seeking help can enter the system through any point and be connected seamlessly to the services they need. Instead of being turned away or redirected multiple times, people are guided into appropriate behavioral health, medical, or social supports regardless of where they first seek assistance. This approach reduces frustration, delays, and drop-offs in care while promoting equity by meeting people where they are. For counties, a no wrong door system strengthens cross-agency collaboration, maximizes the use of limited resources, and creates a more efficient, coordinated safety net.

The convergence of opioid settlement funding and Rural Health Transformation resources is a once-in-a-generation opportunity for county health departments. For leaders ready to take the next step, download our County Funding Strategy Checklist or connect with us today to discuss how to better align dollars with impact.

 

Billions of dollars in funds from opioid settlements are now available for healthcare organizations to continue increasing access to substance use disorder treatment, but what is the best way to make an impact? In case you missed it, Bamboo Health recently hosted a webinar, “Maximizing the Potential of Opioid Settlement Funds,” where law, policy and behavioral health experts discussed how states, local governments and care teams can use this historic opportunity to build lasting change.

The conversation, moderated by Bamboo Health, featured*:

• Alexandra Blasi, Executive Secretary of the Kansas Board of Pharmacy
• Chris Carlson, Partner at Troutman Pepper Locke and former West Virginia Assistant Attorney General
• Blake Christopher, Associate at Troutman Pepper Locke and co-author of Kentucky’s opioid settlement allocation law

Here’s a recap of key insights in their discussion:

Q: What makes opioid settlement funds different now?

Chris Carlson: These funds represent a once-in-a-generation opportunity and a serious responsibility. “This isn’t about quick fixes,” he explained. “It’s about responsible, long-term investment in recovery, prevention and accountability.”

Carlson drew a parallel to the 1998 tobacco master settlement, warning against repeating history. “That was a $206 billion agreement; much of that money didn’t go toward public health. With opioid funds, states have a chance to get it right.”

He emphasized the need for thoughtful, transparent spending as over $57 billion in settlements is distributed nationwide. To learn more about timelines and requirements for each particular state, see here.

Q: How should organizations approach the process of securing these funds?

Blake Christopher: “Winning these dollars isn’t just about submitting the best application,” Christopher said. “It’s about relationships: getting in front of decision-makers, showing what you do and proving your impact.”

Christopher shared lessons from his work in Kentucky, where local leaders turned a small allocation into a significant win. “They invited state legislators to see their facilities firsthand. Those face-to-face connections led to the legislature adding a line item in the state budget to expand their work statewide,” he explained.

His advice:

• Meet partners and stakeholders where they are, in person, whenever possible.
• Build trust by aligning your goals with theirs.
• Follow every regulation carefully so technicalities don’t derail your request.
• And, if you’re out of state, partner with local organizations to strengthen your proposal.

Q: Once you’ve secured funds, what should you focus on during implementation?

Alexandra Blasi: “Sustainability and planning ahead are key,” said Blasi, who oversaw Kansas’s successful effort to fund its Prescription Drug Monitoring Program (PDMP) through opioid settlement dollars.

She recommended that agencies:

• Identify who controls settlement funds within their state.
• Start conversations early, before dollars are distributed.
• Be strategic and specific about your ask.
• Build a coalition of champions across legislative, executive, and community groups.

Blasi’s team worked with the Kansas Attorney General’s Office and state legislators to ensure that PDMP funding was written directly into state law — creating a stable, recurring allocation rather than a temporary grant. “That level of sustainability makes all the difference,” she said.

Q: What about accountability? How can states and organizations ensure funds are used as intended?

Chris Carlson: “Accountability starts with understanding the definition of ‘abatement.’ At least 85% of these dollars must go toward opioid remediation efforts like prevention, treatment and recovery programs. If not, companies can audit and even claw back funds.”

Carlson encouraged applicants to ensure every proposal clearly ties to approved uses. “Creative strategies aren’t dismissed — as long as they’re thoughtful and clearly connected to abatement.”

Blasi added that Kansas maintains transparency through regular reporting and collaboration across agencies. “We track metrics like PDMP utilization and prescriber engagement, and we share outcomes in an annual report to the legislature,” she said. “You don’t need to overcomplicate it — just document your results and show positive impact.”

Q: How can state and local leaders braid settlement funds with other funding streams?

Blake Christopher: “There’s no blanket prohibition against combining settlement dollars with Medicaid, federal grants, or public-health funds. But approach it carefully.”

Christopher advised organizations to talk with fund administrators early to understand how bundling may be perceived. “Some reviewers see it as efficient collaboration; others may see it as double-dipping. Relationships matter, and communication clears that up.”

He also shared examples of regional cooperation: “In northern Kentucky, counties have teamed up to pool settlement dollars for shared prevention and treatment programs. That kind of collaboration can stretch limited funding much further.”

Q: Any final advice for organizations looking to make a real impact?

Alexandra Blasi: “Don’t underestimate storytelling. Data is essential, but personal stories of impact move decision-makers.”

Chris Carlson: “Be proactive, but be patient. These funds are being distributed over 15 to 20 years. What you do today builds credibility for future allocations.”

Blake Christopher: “If your first application doesn’t get funded, don’t give up. Every year brings new opportunities, new commissions, and new leaders. Keep showing up. Persistence pays off.”

Are You Ready to Align Strategy With Impact?

Watch the full webinar for greater insight on compliance, transparency and long-term strategy:  [Webinar] The Impact of Opioid Settlement Funds

 

*Note: The opinions shared are those of the individual speakers and not official statements of Bamboo Health or any participating agency or company, including the speakers’ employers.