Vancouver OKs $4.94M mobile opioid clinic

Vancouver City Council approved a five-year, $4.94 million contract on Monday for the Cowlitz Indian Tribe to run a mobile opioid treatment program, restoring addiction-treatment services the city had already linked to its homelessness response. The contract is valued at up to $4,942,500, according to city contracting records and local reporting. The city says the program will provide medication-assisted treatment and behavioral health support for people experiencing homelessness, including residents of its planned Bridge Shelter. The shelter, a 120-bed facility at 5313 N.E. 94th Ave., is scheduled to open by the end of 2026. ### Why did the city approve this contract now? Monday’s council action gives Vancouver a named operator for a service the city has already described as part of its shelter and homelessness plan. The city’s homelessness page says it partnered with Columbia River Mental Health to launch a mobile opioid treatment program in 2025, providing daily addiction treatment and support for people experiencing homelessness, including services at the future bridge shelter. (civiciq.com) The Columbian reported on Aug. 5 that the new contract with the Cowlitz Indian Tribe is intended to continue services that had previously been provided locally. City materials for the Bridge Shelter also identify the tribe as the provider of medication-assisted treatment and mental and behavioral health support. (cityofvancouver.us) ### What exactly is the Cowlitz Indian Tribe being hired to do? The Cowlitz Indian Tribe is being contracted to operate a mobile opioid treatment program, according to the council item and local coverage. City pages describing the Bridge Shelter say the tribe will provide medication-assisted treatment and other support services aimed at helping people transition to stable housing. (columbian.com) A 2023 tribal announcement said the Cowlitz Indian Tribe had already introduced a mobile treatment unit to expand access to behavioral health and substance-use-disorder services in underserved areas. That release described the unit as a mobile Medication Assisted Treatment van intended to bring care directly into the community. ### How does this fit into Vancouver’s Bridge Shelter plan? (civiciq.com) Vancouver’s Bridge Shelter is designed as a low-barrier, 24/7 facility with integrated services, including mental health care, substance-use treatment, peer support and pathways to housing, according to city statements. The city has said the shelter will have up to 120 beds and will serve as a key part of its emergency homelessness response. (cowlitz.org) The city selected Do Good Multnomah to operate the shelter itself, while assigning the Cowlitz Indian Tribe to provide on-site medical services to treat drug addiction. That division of work suggests the mobile clinic is meant to function as one of the shelter’s embedded services rather than as a stand-alone city program. That is an inference based on the city’s description of the shelter’s operating plan. (cityofvancouver.us) ### Where will the service be available? The city says the Bridge Shelter will be located at 5313 N.E. 94th Ave. in Vancouver. Its public project page says medication-assisted treatment provided by the Cowlitz Indian Tribe is one of the services planned for the site. Vancouver’s broader homelessness page says the mobile opioid treatment program serves people experiencing homelessness and includes services at the future bridge shelter. (cityofvancouver.us) That indicates the clinic is meant to reach unsheltered people as well as eventual shelter residents, though the city’s public materials emphasize the shelter connection. ### What happens next? (cityofvancouver.us) The city’s next step is opening the Bridge Shelter, which Vancouver says will happen by the end of 2026. The shelter’s operations are set to be led by Do Good Multnomah, with the Cowlitz Indian Tribe providing medication-assisted treatment and related support services. The contract approved this week authorizes up to $4,942,500 over five years for the mobile opioid treatment program. (cityofvancouver.us) Once the shelter opens at 5313 N.E. 94th Ave., the city’s published plan calls for the treatment program to be part of the services available there. (civiciq.com) (cityofvancouver.us)