Congress has cut federal funding for public media — a $3.4 million loss for LAist. We count on readers like you to protect our nonprofit newsroom. Become a monthly member and sustain local journalism.
Rather Than Relying Solely On Police, LA County Wants To Explore Unarmed Response To Mental Health Crises On Buses And Trains
(
Courtesy LA Metro
)
The L.A. County Board of Supervisors is interested in having Department of Mental Health workers respond to psychiatric crises on Metro’s buses and trains, rather than relying solely on law enforcement.
The Board voted unanimously Tuesday to direct DMH to work with Metro to come up with an agreement for the possible collaboration. The plan is to fund it with Metro dollars.
“Now, when someone has an issue on transit, it’s just law enforcement, that’s the only option we have to respond to issues,” said Supervisor Janice Hahn, the motion’s co-author.
“I absolutely think that providing these dedicated mental health response teams to our Metro system will contribute to the county’s overall efforts to divert people from jail and get people the help they need wherever we come in contact with them,” she said.
Support for LAist comes from
DMH already runs or co-runs several psychiatric emergency services in the county, including the Psychiatric Mobile Response Teams (PMRTs). Those teams go out on calls with two mental health professionals with the goal of getting a patient treatment without involving law enforcement.
The unarmed PMRTs could be sent out on Metro calls as part of the agreement, or Metro could opt for a co-response model — like the Sheriff’s Department’s Mental Evaluation Teams — which are made up of an armed deputy and a DMH clinician.
Neither DMH nor Metro has data on the number of mental health crises reported on L.A. buses and trains, but a survey of more than 2,000 Metro riders this summer found that 85% of respondents wanted to see more "social workers and mental health professionals available to offer assistance to riders experiencing homelessness, mental health disabilities, and/or addiction."
To pay for the project, Metro wants “to shift resources from [Metro’s] existing law enforcement contracts,” according to the motion.
Metro’s goal is to launch the project by January.
In recent months, the county has moved to expand the use of unarmed clinicians for mental health crises and has called for a plan to make PMRTs available 24/7.
But as of this spring, there were only about 30 PMRTs available for the whole county. And even as supervisors move to expand when and where the teams respond, the county is having trouble recruiting and retaining mental health professionals to do the highly stressful job of intervening in and deescalating mental health crises.
Support for LAist comes from
A separate measure passed by the Supervisors Tuesday attempts to address the dearth of mental health workers by considering signing bonuses and other incentives.
As Editor-in-Chief of our newsroom, I’m extremely proud of the work our top-notch journalists are doing here at LAist. We’re doing more hard-hitting watchdog journalism than ever before — powerful reporting on the economy, elections, climate and the homelessness crisis that is making a difference in your lives. At the same time, it’s never been more difficult to maintain a paywall-free, independent news source that informs, inspires, and engages everyone.
Simply put, we cannot do this essential work without your help. Federal funding for public media has been clawed back by Congress and that means LAist has lost $3.4 million in federal funding over the next two years. So we’re asking for your help. LAist has been there for you and we’re asking you to be here for us.
We rely on donations from readers like you to stay independent, which keeps our nonprofit newsroom strong and accountable to you.
No matter where you stand on the political spectrum, press freedom is at the core of keeping our nation free and fair. And as the landscape of free press changes, LAist will remain a voice you know and trust, but the amount of reader support we receive will help determine how strong of a newsroom we are going forward to cover the important news from our community.
Please take action today to support your trusted source for local news with a donation that makes sense for your budget.
Thank you for your generous support and believing in independent news.
Chip in now to fund your local journalism
(
LAist
)
Trending on LAist
-
The L.A. City Council approved the venue change Wednesday, which organizers say will save $12 million in infrastructure costs. -
Taxes on the sale of some newer apartment buildings would be lowered under a plan by Sacramento lawmakers to partially rein in city Measure ULA.
-
The union representing the restaurant's workers announced Tuesday that The Pantry will welcome back patrons Thursday after suddenly shutting down six months ago.
-
If approved, the more than 62-acre project would include 50 housing lots and a marina less than a mile from Jackie and Shadow's famous nest overlooking the lake.
-
The U.S. Supreme Court lifted limits on immigration sweeps in Southern California, overturning a lower court ruling that prohibited agents from stopping people based on their appearance.
-
Censorship has long been controversial. But lately, the issue of who does and doesn’t have the right to restrict kids’ access to books has been heating up across the country in the so-called culture wars.
Best of LAist