Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Santa Clara supervisors warn state BHSA shift could imperil suicide-prevention services
Summary
Supervisors and advocates told the Health & Hospital Committee that a state-directed shift of behavioral-health funding under the Behavioral Health Services Act risks cutting local suicide-prevention and mobile-crisis programs; the committee voted to receive staff's report and asked for advocacy materials and a letter to state health officials.
Santa Clara County supervisors on Wednesday said they will push state officials to return funding used locally for suicide-prevention after staff explained that the transition from the Mental Health Services Act to the Behavioral Health Services Act has redirected some dedicated revenue to the state.
The Health & Hospital Committee received an update on the BHSA transition and related budget risks and voted to accept the report while requesting advocacy materials and a standalone letter to the state. Chair Otterly said the county would prepare a two-sided public information sheet and pursue legislative outreach to urge the California Department of Public Health to redirect funds back to counties.
The discussion centered on an estimated $8,000,000…
Already have an account? Log in
Subscribe to keep reading
Unlock the rest of this article — and every article on Citizen Portal.
- Unlimited articles
- AI-powered breakdowns of topics, speakers, decisions, and budgets
- Instant alerts when your location has a new meeting
- Follow topics and more locations
- 1,000 AI Insights / month, plus AI Chat
