The Be Well OC Mobile Crisis Program in Huntington Beach—which responds to non-emergency mental health crises in the city—was awarded $500,000 Nov. 1 by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
“The Be Well OC Program has been very successful within Huntington Beach and we are looking forward to the great work it will continue to provide to our residents,” city spokeswoman Jennifer Carey told The Epoch Times.
While the city is always looking for ways to refine and improve its program, the funding, which the city applied for earlier this year, will go toward supporting pre-existing operations, Carey said.
The program’s mobile mental crisis response team dispatches crisis counselors in a van to non-emergency calls to relieve local law enforcement to focus on emergency calls.
Counselors respond using de-escalation tactics, including personal counseling, and can offer transportation to other specialized services.