Community brief

County expands mental health program

The Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors on Feb. 8 unanimously voted to establish a dedicated Mobile Crisis Response Team (MCRT) in the North County and West Valley. The vote came after a motion by Supervisor Joe Simitian, whose District 5 includes Cupertino, Saratoga and parts of Sunnyvale.

In Santa Clara County, Mobile Crisis Response Teams are used to provide medical or social services to people who suffer from mental health or substance abuse. Last year, the program received almost 5,000 calls for service, 1,600 more than in 2020 and nearly 3,800 more than in 2019. There has been a 13% increase in the number of residents accessing the county's behavioral health system since the COVID-19 pandemic began.

As proposed by Simitian, chair of the county's Health and Hospital Committee, the expansion would create a dedicated unit to serve residents in the north county and West Valley. At present, staff responding to calls for service from residents in these areas must travel from San Jose, lengthening their response time.

Expanding the MCRT program is also meant to lessen the strain on law enforcement resources. The American Psychological Association estimates that at least 20% of police calls for service involve mental health or substance abuse issues.

The program “not only provides a more complete and appropriate response, but it also allows law enforcement to focus on other community needs,” Simitian said in a statement.

County staff is set to return to the board on April 19 with a plan for expanding mobile crisis programming to young people, as Simitian proposed.