Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Public Safety Mental Health topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Council approves one-year co-responder mental health clinician contract funded by opioid settlement money
Summary
The police department received approval to fund a year-long co-responder mental health case manager position with opioid settlement funds; officials said the role speeds crisis response and can divert people from emergency rooms.
The council approved a one-year contract to restore a co-responder mental health clinician embedded with the police department, funded from opioid-settlement monies.
Major Sullivan of the police department briefed the committee: Providence Center previously provided an embedded clinician at no cost until nonprofit business models changed, and the department had shared costs for several years. The clinician left last year and the program ended July 1, 2024. The new request funds a one-year subcontract clinician at an approximate cost of $80,000, paid from the city's opioid settlement funds, Major Sullivan said.
Sullivan described how an embedded clinician responds with officers to mental-health-related calls, provides brief intervention, and can fast-track people to behavioral-health providers to avoid repeated police calls for the same individuals and reduce emergency-room usage. "It's an investment on our part because we can hopefully get the person help they need. It might save us 5, 10, 15 future calls for service," Sullivan said.
Contract structure and cost: The position is a subcontract (the clinician is not a city employee), so the city incurs no benefit costs (no pension, health insurance, workers' compensation or payroll taxes for the clinician). The contract is for 12 months so the city can revisit the program annually.
Council response: Council members and committee members spoke in support. Councilman Napa and others said they had observed first-hand the program's value in expediting access to clinical settings and reducing emergency-room hold times. The committee authorized the contract.
What was decided: The council approved funding to bring back an embedded mental-health clinician for one year using opioid-settlement funds and directed the department to proceed with contract execution and annual review.
