Residents, clinicians urge Orange County to open Be Well campuses and save UCI FOCUS program; supervisors press for 'keys' to county facilities
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Summary
Multiple speakers at the March 10 board meeting urged the supervisors to open county‑funded Be Well mental‑health campuses in Orange and Irvine and to continue funding for UCI's FOCUS pediatric trauma program; supervisors described contractual and audit concerns and asked staff to pursue remedies that would allow county oversight to place providers into operation.
Dozens of residents, clinicians and community leaders urged the Orange County Board of Supervisors on March 10 to open county‑funded mental‑health treatment campuses and to preserve a specialized pediatric clinic that may lose funding.
Speakers including Dr. Richard Fable (Mind OC, S20), Rabbi Rick Steinberg (S24) and UC Irvine clinicians described the Be Well campuses as critically needed facilities and said county‑owned campuses in Orange and Irvine are complete but not yet open to all patients. Speakers asked the board to “cut the red tape” and to insist that Mind OC and the Health Care Agency work to place approved providers in the facilities so services can begin. Several speakers emphasized that some beds and a sobering center sit unused while patients wait in emergency departments or jails.
Multiple clinicians from UC Irvine and staff from the FOCUS Families of Children Under Stress program (including Drs. Lilia Carey, Anju Haria and Alfonso Vera Jr.) told the board that FOCUS provides long‑term, trauma‑informed care for children who have survived abuse and also serves as a training site for child and adolescent psychiatry fellows. They warned that potential cuts or program closure would reduce specialized care for vulnerable children and impair training of future clinicians.
Vice Chair Katrina Foley and other supervisors responded with urgency. Foley described the county’s investment in the campuses — ‘‘nearly $60,000,000’’ — and said county audits had identified performance and billing deficiencies by the then‑operator (Mind OC), which led the county to terminate the master services agreement and the ground lease. Foley said the county has the property and the authority to place providers into the buildings and urged staff and the health care agency to move forward: “Give us the keys,” she said.
Supervisors noted unresolved performance deficiencies, billing issues and an ongoing lawsuit by Mind OC seeking damages. Board members said providers approved by the board will be on an upcoming agenda and that the county needs assurance that Medi‑Cal billing and reimbursement will be performed correctly to avoid burning down county funds.
The board did not vote to take possession at the meeting; supervisors said staff will continue working through procurement, contract, audit and litigation issues and will present recommended next steps at future meetings.