Washington State Health Care Authority

Athena prevention newsletter - community-based organization edition

Washington State Health Care Authority sent this bulletin at 09/01/2026 10:00 AM PDT
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September 2026

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In this issue

  • Announcements
  • Minerva 2.0 Announcements
  • Training and events
  • Monthly observances and holidays
  • Job openings

Announcements

Reminder: Washington State Prevention Summit registration is live!

Registration is open for the 2026 Washington State Prevention Summit! Each year, the Summit brings together youth, volunteers, and professionals from across Washington for an enriching training and networking opportunity — all working toward the prevention of substance use disorder, suicide, violence, and other behavioral health challenges.

When: October 28–29, 2026
Where: Hotel Murano, Tacoma, WA
Register today!

  • Adult (Non-Chaperone): $250.00
  • Adult Chaperone / Team Adult Advisor: $195.00
  • Youth: $140.00

Visit the Prevention Summit website for more information.

The Annual Contractor Meeting is September 23

As we head into September, please ensure you are planning to attend the virtual September 23rd Annual Contractor Meeting. This meeting is required for CPWI / CBO contract contacts, coordinators, and fiscal representatives.

As we did not have an August Prevention Provider Meeting and due to the mid-biennium timing, this meeting is expected to have some important statewide updates in addition to reminders to ensure your success for the year to come!

Registration and meeting information will be shared closer to the event. 

Get ready for the new school year with Friends for Life and For Our Lives

Back-to-school season is here, and we have some new and exciting materials available for your youth prevention education needs. Both the Friends for Life and For Our Lives campaigns offer resources covering topics like fentanyl and naloxone education, protective factors, and refusal skills.

Check out all the new materials. 

If you have questions about how to print or use the materials in your community, please reach out to Olivia Efird.

Webinar Recording: Harm Reduction and Nicotine: What's Real, What's Sold

Department of Health's YCCTPP has shared a webinar recording of the event, Harm Reduction and Nicotine: What's Real, What's Sold. 

In this 30-minute webinar, presenters uncover how tobacco companies use the language of safety and innovation to promote nicotine pouches, e-cigarettes, and other non-combustible products. Watch the recording today!

SUD Family Education Sessions by Washington State Community Connectors

Are you a parent, caregiver, or family member supporting a loved one impacted by addiction? Free Substance Use Disorder education sessions are available. This 8-week series covers practical skills from the CRAFT model, communication strategies, and guidance for navigating Washington's behavioral health systems. Presented by families, for families. 

Register today on the Washington State Community Connections website. 


Community Spotlight

Cheney bans synthetic kratom

After introduction in April 2026 and passing three ordinance readings, Cheney City Council unanimously approved the passage of a synthetic Kratom ban in Cheney, Washington. 

The ban includes:

  • This is a ban on the sale of synthetic kratom products within the Cheney city limits.
  • It does not ban online sales of any kratom products.
  • It does not ban possession of any kratom products.
  • Each separate sale, advertisement, or distribution of Kratom is considered an independent violation.
  • Violations result in a civil infraction and $250 fee.
  • Each new day a violation occurs will result in a new penalty.
  • Fines collected are allocated to a fund for Kratom education and enforcement of the ordinance. 
  • The ban includes a sunset clause if or when Washington State or the federal government passes regulation over synthetic kratom.

Read the full language of the ordinance.

Minerva 2.0 Announcements

Enhanced test management features

Test management features have been updated to enhance user experience and create system efficiencies. 

  1. Users who manually entered a test submission can later update the participant first name, last name, birth month, and birth year
  2. Users who manually entered a test submission can later delete the test submission without submitting a Support Ticket
  3. When users manually enter a test submission, they can select which participant the test is associated with from a dropdown list of the respective cohort participants
  4. An icon was added to the test distribution page to indicate if the test was entered by the participant or entered manually entered by the user (indicating whether that test can be managed with these new features)
  5. Users may delete a test distribution that was never used, or never received any test submissions
  6. Functionality was fixed so that when a participant is completing or in the process of filling out a test submission, pressing the Return or Enter key on their keyboard no longer (accidentally) submits the test prematurely.
  7. Despite these changes, users may not view test answers at any point outside the initial data entry

The new features were developed in response to user feedback and are intended to help users successfully pair pre and post test more efficiently.

If you have any questions, please get in touch with your HCA Prevention Manager.

Training and events

HCA

Minerva New User Training - Task Order 2 School Based Services 
September 8, 10, 11 
Virtual

Coalition Coordinator Community of Practice
September 21
Virtual

Minerva Technical Support
September 9
Virtual

Annual Contractor Meeting
September 23
Virtual

Strategic Planning: Planning & program selection
September 14
Virtual

Strategic Planning: Developing a monitoring plan for your strategic plan
September 23
Virtual

Live HCA event captioning available

Communication Access Real-time Transcription (CART) services, or live closed captioning, are available for events, on demand. Scheduling CART services requires a three-week lead-time.

To request this accommodation, please submit a request as soon as possible to:
the Athena Team.

If you make your request less than a week in advance of the event, our language access manager cannot guarantee that a CART writer will be available.

Other

Prevention Ethics
September 7-18
Virtual

Tobacco Use Disorder Integration
September 8
Virtual

Alcohol can cause what?
September 15
Virtual

Designing effective meetings
September 16 
Virtual

The Dose Makes the Poison: Cannabinoid Hyperemesis Syndrome Goes Mainstream
September 18
Hybrid / Seattle, WA

An Antidote Affair September 18
Spokane, WA

Alcohol Policy Conference
Sept 29-Oct 1
Arlington, VA

Small Towns, Big Impact: Rural Prevention Conference
October 1-2
Wenatchee, WA

Mental Health America Conference
October 8-9
Washington, DC

SPORT PPW implementor training
September 9 
Virtual

Prevention Ethics refresher
September 15
Virtual

Communities That Care Training of Facilitators September 17-30
Virtual

Understanding Cannabinoid Hyperemesis Syndrome
September 18
Virtual

Prevention Ethics refresher
September 22
Virtual

Positive Indian Parenting and Tribal Child Welfare Casework Practice
Sept 29-Oct1
Portland, OR

Guiding Good Choices Training of Workshop Leaders
October 5-9
Virtual

YCCTPP Lunch and Learn
September 9 
Virtual

The power of story and art: supporting youth mental health through comics
September 16
Virtual

Becoming a Youth Mental Health First Aid Instructor
September 17
Virtual

Pierce County Suicide Prevention Summit and 5K
September 18
Gig Harbor, WA

Quincy Partnership for Youth SFP 10-14 Training
Sept 25-Oct 3
Quincy, WA

National Prevention Network Conference
September 29-30
Virtual

National Sobering Collaborative Summit
October 7-9
St. Louis, MI

Monthly observances and holidays

September is...

  • Hispanic Heritage Month
  • National Food Safety Education Month
  • National Recovery Month
  • Suicide Prevention Awareness Month
  • Self-Care Awareness Month

National Suicide Prevention Week September 6-12

Enkutatash
September 11

National AIDS and Aging Awareness Day
September 18

Mid-Autumn Festival / Mooncake Festival
September 25

World Suicide Prevention Day
September 10

Rosh Hashanah
September 11-13

Talk Like A Pirate Day
September 19

National Day of Forgiveness
September 27

National Day of Service and Remembrance
September 11

National Sober Day
September 14

Yom Kippur
September 20-21

Job openings

HCA

Prevention Services Compliance Manager (MA4)
HCA  / DBHR 
Olympia, WA
(hybrid) 

Other

Student Assistance Professional - Sultan
NW ESD 189
Sultan, WA
(in-person)

Senior Project Coordinator
PTTC, Institute for Human Development
Kansas City, KS
(in-person)

 

Thank you for your role in preventing substance use disorder and promoting mental health

The intent of this newsletter is to provide updates from the Division of Behavioral Health and Recovery, as well as general prevention information. You can manage your subscription below. If you have questions, please contact the Athena Forum Team.

 

About the Health Care Authority (HCA)

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.

Please do not reply directly to this message. For more information, visit the HCA website, where you'll also find contact information.

Disclosure notice

All messages we send via GovDelivery are subject to public disclosure, as are the names and email addresses of those who sign up for email notifications.

Nondiscrimination

The Washington State Health Care Authority (HCA) complies with all applicable federal and Washington state civil rights laws and is committed to providing equal access to our services. Visit HCA’s website to view complete nondiscrimination statements.

 

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