A school-based health center (SBHC) is located in or adjacent to a school and typically provides medical, behavioral health, and other health care services to students.  An SBHC is usually a collaboration between the community, the school, and a health care sponsor.  The health care sponsor may be a community clinic or health care system, hospital, public health department, or tribal program.  Under this model, the health care sponsor staffs and operates the SBHC.  SBHCs typically are staffed by a primary care provider, behavioral health care provider, and clinic coordinator, although dental and other health professionals may also provide services.   According to the Washington School-Based Health Alliance, there are more than 50 SBHCs throughout the state. 

State law authorizes school district boards of directors to permit rental, lease, or occasional use of surplus real property if certain requirements are met.  In a 1989 Office of the Attorney General (AGO) opinion, the AGO concluded school districts may lease surplus school district property to public or private entities to operate adolescent health care clinics as long as the board of directors finds this is compatible with the district's other uses for its property, and the clinic is not operated or controlled by the school district.

The Department of Health must establish a SBHC program office.  The objective of the program office is to expand and sustain the availability of SBHC services to K-12 public school students with a focus on historically underserved populations.

Subject to appropriations, the program office must:

• develop grant funding criteria and metrics for monitoring and evaluating grant recipients in partnership with a statewide nonprofit organization that provides training and technical assistance to SBHCs;
• award grant funding for SBHCs' planning, start-up costs, and ongoing operating costs; 
• monitor and evaluate SBHCs that receive grant funding;
• partner with a statewide nonprofit organization to provide training and technical assistance to SBHCs; and
• coordinate with the statewide nonprofit organization, educational service districts, the Health Care Authority, hosting school districts, and the Office of the Insurance Commissioner to provide support to SBHCs.

SBHC is defined as a collaboration between the community, the school, and a sponsoring agency that operates the school-based health center, which is a student-focused health center located in or adjacent to a school that provides integrated medical, behavioral health, and other health care services such as dental care.