The goal of the CARE Act, which stands for Community Assistance, Recovery and Empowerment, is to help those with specific, severe mental illnesses access medication, housing and other services.
It’s meant for people facing homelessness or incarceration when other supports haven’t been enough. The program is only for those with schizophrenia-spectrum disorders or bipolar I disorder with psychotic features.
Clients can either choose to participate or be ordered to do so involuntarily by the court. They then work with a team to create a CARE plan or agreement that is specifically designed to address their needs. It's supposed to last up to one year, with another year added if needed.
Jacob Rosen, managing mental health clinician for the city of Eureka, said Humboldt County has had one of the highest rates of people being referred into the program compared to other counties.
"We've really been able to come together and for the clients that have been referred, really kind of streamline the process as much as we can and jump through the hoop so that those folks can get the services that they need," he said said.
In just over a year, the county has had 55 referrals, and one person graduated from the program.
That’s much better than other counties throughout the state, which, as Cal Matters reports, have seen fewer successes per capita.
Humboldt County has long struggled with a lack of mental health supports.
But in a presentation to the Eureka City Council on Tuesday, Rosen said there’s still a lack of consequences for people who don’t comply and not enough state funding for the program.
"It's still largely an unfunded mandate on the behavioral health departments across the state. There is some opportunity to bill for some of the contacts that behavioral health departments have with CARE Court. However, it's not something that really covers the costs due to the intensity of services needed with those clients," he said. "Whenever you're looking at involuntary treatment, that intensity usually requires a lot of staff time, and a lot of that staff time ends up being unfunded, which is really difficult for behavioral health departments, which are already struggling."
Not enough money means there also aren’t enough staff.
"Having two staff members is not sufficient for the level of intensity that's needed to treat the folks who are referred for CARE Court," Rosen said.
The referral process is also considered too complex, he said.
There were some updates to the program in the fall in an effort to streamline court processes, among other things.
Rosen said they're continuing to work on getting certain people involved in CARE Court, like those who are aggressive and violent and frequently involved with police.
