Young people exiting Green Hill, Echo Glen will be Eligible for Expanded Health Care Coverage

For immediate release.

DCYF will be the first Washington state agency to launch this national health care innovation to prepare individuals exiting from carceral settings.

Olympia, WA – Beginning March 1, young people at Green Hill School and Echo Glen Children’s Center will be eligible for health care insurance 90 days before their release through the Medicaid Transformation Project Reentry Initiative.  

The Department of Children, Youth, and Families (DCYF), in collaboration with the Health Care Authority (HCA), will be the first state agency to provide health care services to individuals exiting from a carceral setting.  

"As the second state in the nation to provide reentry services – and the first to implement this work through managed care organizations – Washington is leading a transformative shift in rehabilitation. Through strong cross-agency partnership and a shared vision, we are building a system that meets youth where they are and helps them move toward healthier, more stable futures," said Trinity Wilson, HCA’s Interim Medicaid director.

Young people exiting Green Hill and Echo Glen will be eligible for Apple Health up to 90 days before their release and receive Medicaid Discharge Planning to support their health and reentry into their community, including: 

  • Care management
  • Physical and behavioral health appointments
  • Medications for opioid use disorder
  • A 30-day supply of medications
  • Other supports

“Finding a doctor and setting up an appointment is stressful for anyone, let alone a young person leaving a carceral setting who may have been a teenager when they got here and never accessed these services before,” said Assistant Secretary of Juvenile Rehabilitation Jennifer Redman. “This initiative means that young people will return to their communities without a gap in treatment or medication.” 

In addition to Echo Glen and Green Hill, the Reentry Initiative will launch at state prisons, local jails, and detention centers across Washington state.  

Harbor Heights is expected to begin offering Reentry Initiative services in July 2026.  

For media use: Images of young people receiving health care at Green Hill:

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About Washington State Health Care Authority

Functioning as both the state's largest health care purchaser and its behavioral health authority, the Washington State Health Care Authority (HCA) is a leader in ensuring Washington residents have the opportunity to be as healthy as possible.
 
There are three pillars of our work: Apple Health (Medicaid); the Public Employees Benefits Board (PEBB) and School Employees Benefits Board (SEBB) programs; and behavioral health and recovery. Under these pillars, HCA purchases health care, including behavioral health treatment for more than 2.7 million Washington residents and provides behavioral health prevention, crisis, and recovery supports to all Washington residents.