City, public-health and ADAMH outline alternative crisis response expansion and staffing needs amid funding uncertainty

Columbus City staff and county behavioral-health officials used the Health, Human Services and Equity Committee hearing to map the city’s alternative crisis response investments and to outline remaining gaps.

Public Safety briefed the committee that the department’s personnel commitment for alternate-response services in 2026 totals about $5.2 million (roughly $4.56 million from the general fund and approximately $683,000 in grant funds). Public Safety said its mobile crisis response program includes one fire social worker (cost cited at $135,780), one sergeant and five officers, with a total public-safety investment for mobile crisis response of about $1,260,000.

Columbus Public Health’s Anita Clark said the health department plans 7 FTEs for the mobile crisis response team at an estimated cost of $925,000 (clinicians, supervisor and program manager). Combining public-safety and public-health staffing and operations produces an estimated $6.8 million in personnel costs for the city’s alternative-response continuum in 2026, city staff told the committee.

Anita Clark also described a mayoral allocation of $1,000,000 to create a civilian response team pilot (two clinicians, two peer supporters and one program manager under public health), add a clinician to the Right Response Unit, establish a community advisory panel and provide supports such as a therapy dog for mobile teams. Clark characterized the civilian team as a pilot that will take months to stand up and said hours would likely align with mobile crisis response core hours rather than full 24/7 coverage.

Monica Sarazuela of the Alcohol, Drug and Mental Health Board of Franklin County (ADAMH) presented ADAMH’s 2026 investment plan and described the Franklin County Crisis Care Center, which opened Sept. 2 and operates 23-hour observation capacity for up to 40 people. ADAMH plans to invest nearly $100,000,000 in the county behavioral-health safety net in 2026 and earmarked about $30,800,000 for crisis services; the board expects to contribute more than $11,000,000 this year to the crisis center’s operations. "We believe that when someone is experiencing a behavioral-health crisis, they should have someone to call, someone to come, and somewhere to go," Sarazuela said.

Council members pressed whether ADAMH’s crisis investments constrained other provider funding; Sarazuela said a voter-approved levy renewal with a small increase will sustain current investments and enable targeted expansion in the coming levy cycle.

City staff and ADAMH leaders emphasized that while investments are growing, sustainable statewide financing for facility-based crisis care does not yet exist and that local systems are absorbing most operating costs.

Next steps: staff said they will continue interagency planning, monitor pilot staffing and report back to council on operational timelines and budget alignment.