Chester County officials outline mental health services, crisis response and budget

Chester County officials on July 23 presented an overview of the county’s mental health programs, funding and recent service expansions, emphasizing a shift toward crisis response and community-based supports.

County administrators said the county’s mental health department acts as the local administrative and service delivery entity for the Pennsylvania Office of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services (OMHSAS). The department contracts with community providers, monitors provider compliance and uses state allocations and county funds to support services not covered by other payers.

Linda Cox, administrator for Mental Health and Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities, and Candy Craig, mental health deputy administrator, highlighted key figures and programs. The department’s overall revenue for the fiscal year shown on the presentation was about $21 million, with roughly $16 million coming from human-services block grant funding. Officials also said county ARPA funds and other grants totaling more than $10 million contributed to the development of crisis services.

Officials described the Chester County Human Needs Network, created in 2024 as a “no-wrong-door” contact center offering information, referral and 24/7 access to behavioral health crisis services. The county funds supported housing and community residential rehabilitation services — described in the presentation as accounting for about two-thirds of the department’s budget.

Candy Craig summarized community programs and training: more than 7,000 community members have completed Mental Health First Aid adult or youth courses in the last decade, and the county’s Crisis Intervention Team (CIT) training for law enforcement — a weeklong program for police, probation and corrections officers — has trained more than 380 participants since 2017. Officials also highlighted partnerships such as the county’s NAMI program and a suicide prevention partnership.

Officials said the department does not provide direct services but contracts with providers to deliver outpatient psychiatric care, case management, supported housing and crisis services; the department also monitors contract deliverables and provides reports to OMHSAS. For more information, the department offered a county contact number: (610) 344-6265.

Commissioners thanked staff for the presentation and praised employees for crisis-response work and program development. No formal action was taken; county officials said programs will continue under existing funding lines and that staff will report as needed on program outcomes.

Speakers quoted in this article presented program descriptions and budget figures during the mental health highlights presentation.