Contra Costa Health Plan Approves $300,000 Behavioral and Neuropsychological Evaluation Contract

CONTRA COSTA COUNTY, Calif. — October 27, 2026. Contra Costa County supervisors approved a contract with Scott Howard, Ed.D., for up to $300,000 in behavioral health treatment assessments, comprehensive diagnostic evaluations and pre-surgical psychological and neuropsychological evaluations.

Scope and funding

The agreement runs from October 1, 2026 to September 30, 2029. Services are intended for Contra Costa Health Plan members and qualifying county recipients and are funded by the health plan enterprise fund. Such evaluations can be requested for different clinical and treatment-planning purposes.

What the decision does not guarantee

The contract is not a guarantee that every plan member qualifies for every form of testing, that referrals are unnecessary or that an individual patient will be scheduled immediately. Clinical appropriateness and health-plan authorization should be confirmed with care providers.

Official source: Contra Costa County Board of Supervisors October 20 legislative record, marked Passed.

County action occurred October 20; this original local news explainer was published October 27, 2026.

YOUR LOCAL NEWSPAPER NEEDS YOU

Help this community newspaper grow

Your support helps build coverage for the people and places this local newspaper serves.

Donate once by card ↗

Help Martinez News grow Help strengthen reporting on Martinez: community voices, important decisions and local life.

Support Martinez News

Choose how to support Martinez News:

Credit / Debit Card via Stripe

Choose an amount from $1. One-time support through the publisher's LINKERNO Stripe account.

Continue with PayPal Continue with Zelle

Zelle payments go to Vitaly Ataev Troshin. Please verify the recipient in your bank before sending. Availability depends on your bank.

Optional reader support. When possible, add “Martinez News” to the payment note. Contributions are not advertised as tax-deductible. Support does not influence editorial decisions.

Optional support through the publisher. Contributions are not advertised as tax-deductible and never buy editorial influence.

Martinez News — Your Community Newspaper

Have a correction, news tip, local announcement, or story to submit? Contact our editorial team. All submissions are reviewed before publication.