Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Behavioral Health Systems topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Behavioral Health System Baltimore urges wider use of 988 as city confronts unregulated recovery homes
Summary
City behavioral health leaders described rising 988 use and mobile crisis responses, and told council members that unregulated recovery homes fall outside public behavioral health regulation, prompting calls for stronger interagency review and community engagement in licensing and oversight.
Adrienne Breidenstine, vice president of policy and communications at Behavioral Health System Baltimore, described the city’s public behavioral health authority and the role of 988 in connecting people to crisis and recovery services.
"We are a nonprofit organization and we are the city's local behavioral health authority," Breidenstine said. She said the system serves about 75,000 people annually through roughly 300 distinct programs and that the department and BHSB jointly fund prevention and crisis services. She noted that 988, the national three‑digit crisis line launched in July 2022, has seen steady increases in use: "we've been hovering around kind of like 5,000 calls a month to 988 and the other access points," and text volume has grown to hundreds per month.
Council members pressed how the city ensures that callers who require higher levels of care receive effective follow‑through and outcomes tracking. BHSB and other speakers said the system measures call‑answer timeliness, proportion of concerns resolved by phone and community resolutions for dispatched teams, and that outcomes tracking for longer‑term recovery is a workstream they continue to develop with partners.
Several council members raised concerns about unregulated residential recovery homes that operate outside state public behavioral health licensing. Dan Rabbit, policy director at Behavioral Health System Baltimore, and others said complaints about unlicensed homes are commonly referred to the Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD) because DHCD retains authority over local housing licensure and enforcement. Breidenstine noted revised COMAR regulations are out for public comment but do not currently include some community‑engagement provisions BHSB has urged. Council members and BHSB said they are exploring interagency steps — including earlier review by the local behavioral health authority and stronger good‑neighbor community input — to prevent oversaturation of under‑regulated facilities in disinvested neighborhoods.
Sarah Whaley of the Mayor’s Office of Overdose Response said the office plans public engagement around the BCHD needs assessment and the strategic plan and is evaluating local actions to help the public identify higher‑quality treatment options.
