The mental health landscape is constantly evolving, and innovative solutions are crucial to address the needs of individuals facing serious mental health challenges. The CARE (Community Assistance, Recovery, and Empowerment) Program represents a significant shift in how we approach mental health care, offering a compassionate and effective pathway to recovery. This program is designed to provide individuals with clinically appropriate, community-based services and supports, delivered in a culturally and linguistically sensitive manner. The CARE program for mental health is structured to be an empowering and supportive process, focused on individual needs and long-term wellness.
What is the CARE Program for Mental Health?
At its core, the CARE program is a civil court process focused on providing a helping hand, not a punitive measure. It offers participants a structured CARE plan, which is individualized and can initially last up to 12 months, with the possibility of a 12-month extension if needed. These plans are comprehensive, ensuring access to a wide array of essential services. This includes short-term stabilization medications to manage acute symptoms, wellness and recovery support services to build resilience, and crucial connections to social services, with housing often being a critical component. Recognizing the fundamental need for stable housing, the CARE program acknowledges that recovery is significantly hindered when individuals are unhoused.
The CARE program is intentionally designed as an “upstream” intervention. This means it aims to divert individuals from more restrictive and less desirable outcomes such as conservatorships or incarceration. Evidence strongly suggests that many individuals can achieve stability, begin their healing journey, and successfully transition out of homelessness when provided with appropriate support in less restrictive, community-based settings. Advances in mental health treatment models, including the development of longer-acting antipsychotic medications, combined with dedicated clinical teams and access to housing, make it possible to effectively stabilize and support individuals within their communities who might otherwise face severe hardship on the streets or experience avoidable incarceration.
Who is the CARE Program Designed For?
It’s important to clarify that the CARE program for mental health is not a universal solution for everyone experiencing homelessness or mental illness. Instead, it is specifically targeted towards individuals with schizophrenia spectrum disorders and other psychotic disorders who meet clearly defined criteria. The program is designed to intervene proactively, before these individuals reach a crisis point that could lead to arrest, commitment to a state hospital, or a Lanterman-Petris-Short (LPS) Mental Health Conservatorship. The CARE program can also serve as a valuable step following a short-term involuntary hospital hold (whether a 72-hour or 14-day hold) or as a safe diversion from certain criminal justice proceedings. While homelessness is a complex issue with diverse causes, the CARE program focuses on addressing the particularly vulnerable population suffering from treatable mental health conditions, aiming to connect them with effective treatment and support for lasting recovery. The ultimate goal of the CARE program is to guide thousands of Californians toward sustained wellness.
Empowering Recovery and Ensuring Accountability
Central to the CARE program is the commitment to fostering recovery and self-sufficiency. The CARE process begins with a petition to the court, which can be initiated by a broad range of concerned individuals. This includes care providers, family members, first responders, and other individuals specified in the CARE Act. To ensure participant rights and empowerment, individuals involved in the CARE program are provided with legal counsel. They are also offered the opportunity to choose a voluntary supporter, who can assist them in understanding the process, considering options, and communicating their decisions. This supporter, along with a dedicated clinical team, empowers the participant to make self-directed choices to the greatest extent possible. The CARE plan itself is meticulously designed to identify, coordinate, and focus on the individual needs of each participant, ensuring that crucial services like clinical treatment and housing are effectively integrated – services that are often fragmented in traditional systems. Furthermore, the inclusion of a Psychiatric Advance Directive within the CARE process is a significant step towards protecting participant autonomy. This allows individuals to legally document their treatment preferences in advance, ensuring their wishes are respected in the event of a future mental health crisis.
Accountability is a two-way street within the CARE program. If a participant, despite receiving all the services and supports outlined in their CARE plan, is unable to successfully complete the program, the Court retains the authority under the LPS Act to ensure their safety and well-being. In such cases, the participant’s lack of progress despite program participation will be taken into consideration in any subsequent LPS Act hearings within six months of CARE plan termination. This creates a presumption that the individual requires intervention beyond the scope of the CARE program.
Crucially, the CARE program also holds local governments accountable for providing necessary care. It leverages existing robust funding streams available to counties, including billions of dollars allocated annually for behavioral health care through initiatives like the Mental Health Services Act and behavioral health realignment funds. Significant state funding dedicated to addressing homelessness, including billions allocated in recent years for housing and clinical residential placements, further supports the program’s infrastructure. Participants in CARE Court are also prioritized for bridge housing funded by the Behavioral Health Bridge Housing program. To ensure these responsibilities are met, the Court has the power to order sanctions if local governments fail to fulfill their obligations under court-ordered CARE plans. In extreme situations, the Court can even appoint an agent to guarantee that essential services are provided. The CARE program for mental health represents a comprehensive and accountable approach to supporting individuals on their path to recovery.
