Vision 2030 Solution Symposium Agenda

California has spent the last several years pushing some of the most ambitious behavioral health reforms in the country. New investments have reshaped crisis response, expanded services for youth, transformed county systems, and centered effective treatment methods. But shifting federal policy and fiscal uncertainty put these reforms at risk.

Protecting the progress made requires collective action. We must stay focused on developing practical strategies that preserve access to care and ensure our reforms continue to take root in communities across the state.

Our second annual symposium brings together diverse perspectives—providers, policymakers, payers, advocates, and system leaders—to strategize around both immediate threats and long-term implementation needs.

Panels will center on the areas where the stakes are greatest: homelessness, parity enforcement, crisis response, and the criminalization of substance use.

Explore the preliminary agenda and panels below, or download the PDF here.

Symposium Panels

Protecting California’s Progress: Advancing Reform Amid Uncertainty

At a moment when California’s historic investments in behavioral health are intersecting with federal setbacks and a state budget deficit, protecting our progress requires collective action and innovative strategies to preserve access to care and advance reform.

In this panel, former State Senator Susan Eggman, Former California Health & Human Services Agency Dr. Mark Ghaly, and Steinberg Institute Founder Darrell Steinberg will explore how California can sustain and implement major behavioral health reforms—like Proposition 1, BH-CONNECT, and CalAim implementation—amid immediate federal threats, budget challenges, and long-term implementation needs.

FEATURING

Susan Talamantes Eggman, PhD, LCSW

Former State Senator, District 5
Author of Behavioral Health Services Act (BHSA)

Dr. Mark Ghaly

Former Secretary, California Health & Human Services

Darrell Steinberg

Former Sacramento Mayor, Founder of Steinberg Institute

Aligning Systems for Impact: Policy, Provider, and Payer Perspectives on Behavioral Health Reform

California’s behavioral health system can only deliver meaningful change when policy, payment, and care delivery strategies reinforce, rather than contradict, one another. This panel brings together voices from across the system to explore how their vantage points inform one another and how shared goals can drive more coordinated, effective care. Panelists will examine where perspectives diverge, where alignment is essential, and how better communication, accountability, and partnership can help build a behavioral health system capable of meeting Californians’ needs.

MODERATOR

Kana Enomoto

Director of Brain Health, McKinsey Health Institute

PANELIST

Jacey Cooper

President, Precision Health Strategies

PANELIST

Al Guida

President & CEO, Guide Consulting Services, Inc.

PANELIST

Marko Mijic

Vice President for Community Health, Kaiser Permanente

Redefining Response: Building a Safe and Effective Crisis Response System

When someone is in crisis, where they go can make all the difference. Right now, too many people end up in emergency rooms or hospitals because our crisis response systems aren’t meeting the moment. This panel, featuring leaders from law enforcement, fire, and mobile crisis response systems, will explore how better coordination in the field, stronger crisis care options, and clearer paths to recovery can help people get the right care at the right time to promote compassionate long-term recovery.

MODERATOR

Tara Gamboa-Eastman

Director of Government Affairs, Steinberg Institute

PANELIST

Todd Henry

Police Chief, Davis Police Department

PANELIST

Michael Mohun

EMS Battalion Chief, San Ramon Valley Fire Protection District

PANELIST

Kelli Weaver, LCSW

Behavioral Health Deputy Director, Behavioral Health Services, Department of Health Services, County of Sacramento

From Incarceration to Care: Decriminalizing and Caring for Individuals with Substance Use Disorders

California’s approach to substance use disorders has shifted frequently over the past several decades, and the passage of Proposition 36 in 2024 marks another turning point in how the state responds. This panel will dig into how crisis response, diversion, prevention, and treatment systems can better coordinate to prioritize care over custody for people with substance use disorders. Featuring a leader in rehabilitation, a county substance use prevention leader, and a nationally recognized addiction medicine and behavioral health policy expert, the discussion will explore what it takes—across policy, practice, and systems design—to build clear, coordinated pathways into treatment before, during, and after jail, and to prevent the cycle of repeated system involvement.

MODERATOR

Karen Larsen, LMFT

Chief Executive Officer, Steinberg Institute

PANELIST

Doug Bond

President & CEO, Amity Foundation

PANELIST

Yngvild Olsen

National Advisor, Manatt, Phelps & Phillips, LLP

PANELIST

Gary Tsai, MD, DFAPA, FASAM

Director, Substance Abuse Prevention and Control (SAPC) Bureau, County of Los Angeles, Dept of Public Health

Modern Systems for a Strained Workforce: Technology, Access, and the Next Era of Behavioral Health

Expanding access to care in California’s behavioral health system requires rethinking how care is delivered, supported, and scaled, and addressing the state’s behavioral health workforce shortage is central to that challenge. This panel will explore how technology and emerging AI tools can be leveraged ethically and responsibly to expand access to care while strengthening the behavioral health workforce. The discussion will examine how digital tools, team-based models, training pipelines, and reductions in administrative burden can build workforce capacity, improve retention, and help position the workforce to sustain the next era of behavioral health reform.

MODERATOR

Andrew Barr

Founding Partner, GreyMatter

PANELIST

Dr. Caroline Fenkel, DSW, LCSW

Co-Founder and Chief Clinical Officer, Charlie Health

PANELIST

Laura Tully, Ph.D.

Vice President of Partnerships, Kooth Digital Health

PANELIST

Elise Witek, MA, LMHC

Senior Director of Partnerships, Eleos Health

PANELIST

Noa Oldak-Moradian

Director of Community Engagement, Brightline

Breaking the Cycle: Strategies to Reduce Homelessness, Incarceration, and Hospitalization

Even with significant investments, too many Californians continue to cycle through homelessness, incarceration, and hospitalization instead of getting the treatment and stability they deserve. This panel explores how California can better align housing and behavioral health systems to interrupt that cycle and expand access to care. Focusing on coordinated entry, Proposition 1, return to community, and innovative treatment models, the discussion will examine how stronger accountability, data integration, and cross-system coordination can improve outcomes and help shift public perceptions about what it takes to reduce homelessness for people with significant behavioral health challenges.

MODERATOR