March 18, 2026 • San Diego, CA
SAN DIEGO, CA — March 18, 2026 — Legara Inc. announced the launch of its behavioral health workforce platform, a purpose-built system that connects Federally Qualified Health Centers with a vetted network of independent behavioral health clinicians. The platform addresses a growing crisis in safety-net healthcare: patients waiting weeks or months for behavioral health appointments while health centers struggle with clinician shortages, high employment costs, and unsustainable utilization rates.
Unlike traditional staffing agencies or telehealth vendors, Legara operates on a per-encounter model. Health centers pay only for completed patient visits — eliminating the salary risk, benefits overhead, and underutilization that define the conventional hiring model. Legara's clinicians are independent practitioners supported by a full operational infrastructure that manages scheduling, onboarding, credentialing, compliance, and EHR integration on their behalf.
The results are already measurable. Across its active FQHC partners in California, Legara clinicians maintain an 82% effective utilization rate — compared to approximately 52% for employed providers — and a 14% no-show rate, significantly below the 25% industry average. Psychiatry wait times at partner health centers have dropped to under two weeks.
"Health centers were stuck choosing between expensive hires they couldn't fully utilize and telehealth vendors that didn't understand FQHC operations. Neither model was built for them. So we designed one that was — where the economics align for everyone. Health centers get the capacity they need, clinicians get the autonomy and support they want, and patients get seen."
Roger Stellers, CEO, Legara Inc.
The platform's architecture also addresses a regulatory challenge that many health centers face when expanding behavioral health capacity. Because Legara's clinicians are independent practitioners — not employees or subcontractors of the health center — the model is designed to maintain compliance with corporate practice of medicine statutes. Health centers retain full clinical authority over patient care while Legara handles the operational and administrative infrastructure that supports the clinician workforce.
Legara currently serves FQHCs across California with over 50,000 completed behavioral health encounters per year, delivered by more than 40 active providers spanning therapy and psychiatry. The company's initial focus is California's FQHC network, with plans to expand into additional Medicaid expansion states as demand dictates.
Legara's onboarding process is designed around the operational realities of FQHCs — beginning with a clinical needs assessment, followed by provider matching and credentialing, and concluding with EHR integration and scheduling setup. Health centers typically reach full productivity within four to six weeks of provider onboarding.
Legara Inc. is a behavioral health workforce platform purpose-built for Federally Qualified Health Centers and safety-net healthcare organizations. The platform connects health centers with a vetted network of independent, CA-licensed behavioral health clinicians — therapists (LCSW/LMFT/Psychologist) and psychiatric providers (PMHNP) — integrated into existing scheduling, EHR, and care coordination workflows. Health centers pay per completed encounter with no FTE risk, no capital outlay, and no placement fees. Provider turnover is under 3%, compared to ~30% industry average. Legara is headquartered in San Diego, California. Learn more at golegara.com.
Legara Inc.
marketing@golegara.com
golegara.com
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