Santa Clara County Crisis & Personal Support Digest

These professionals provide essential services, but their pay and working conditions do not reflect their value, and their health suffers.

The monthly rate of antidepressants being dispensed to young people increased about 64% more quickly during the coronavirus pandemic, according to a study in the journal Pediatrics.

Health providers and addiction experts warn the funding structure is unstable for a California initiative that steers patients with substance use disorder into long-term treatment.

Gov. Gavin Newsom crafted the measure to reform California’s mental health system, including a $6.4-billion bond for new facilities.

A pending bill would extend the so-called 5150 confinement authority to county-designated psychiatrists, psychologists, clinical social workers, licensed marriage and family therapists, and clinical counselors.

The March ballot measure would raise billions for mental health care, but some clinics fear it would strip them of revenue they need for services they provide today.

In the year and a half since its launch, 988—the country’s easy-to-remember suicide and crisis hotline—has received about 8.1 million calls, texts, and chats. Curiosity is growing about the people taking those calls.

At the Pacific Neuroscience Institute in Santa Monica, scientists are eager to explore whether a psychedelic chemical found in a toad could help people with depression. But research has been put on hold by the state.

San Diego Unified School District has received more than $700 million in federal and state relief funds since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. Now, with these funds ending, some schools could be facing serious deficits.

County leaders in San Diego are gearing up for a March bond measure that could help provide more behavioral health beds. More beds are needed for areas like mental health and detox.

The 33-year old Mexican-born man—who from toddler age has been a permanent legal resident of California—has reported abuse, unsanitary conditions and threats of force-feeding before his release from immigration detention in April.

San Jose and Santa Clara County have spent decades and millions of dollars trying to end homelessness, and while some progress has been made, thousands remain on the street each night — and hundreds die each year.

Federal funding for domestic violence shelters and housing programs is declining. Advocates want the state to step in, but with a record projected deficit new spending is unlikely.

The greatest challenge for someone experiencing a mental health crisis is finding immediate access to care that doesn’t involve the police. A Santa Clara County program offers this option, but it's difficult to reach.

Santa Clara County is expediting the implementation of new conservatorship rules for people suffering from severe mental illness and substance use disorders.

Workers are in the final stages of a long, $217 million project: Install a protective barrier at the Golden Gate Bridge. Roughly 2,000 people have died by suicide jumping from the bridge since it opened in 1937.

The County of Santa Clara Behavioral Health Services Department is scheduled to host a fentanyl education and Narcan training at the Rinconada Library.

California’s population of homeless veterans has plateaued despite billions of dollars in state spending to create housing for former service members. Now, Gov. Gavin Newsom wants to shift resources to focus on veterans with serious mental health conditions.

A San Francisco law firm filed a lawsuit against the U.S. Department of State and U.S. Department of Defense on behalf of a Bay Area resident who is stuck in the Gaza Strip amid an escalating Israeli military campaign.

A new report bolsters the importance of guaranteed basic income programs as a lifeline for families in Santa Clara County who can’t afford the necessities.

Author Victoria Sanford will discuss her book about an investigation of the unsolved murder of a female law student and the pervasive violence against Guatemalan women that drives migration.

H4U does constant outreach, bringing food and hygiene packs to Milpitas’ unhoused residents while also doing more intensive work to help them get off the streets and into permanent housing.

When Palo Alto asked local churches to open their parking lots to people who live in their cars, city leaders saw it as a small solution to the giant problem of homelessness. Pleased with the results, they’re now looking to expand it.

South Bay philanthropist John A. Sobrato wants to lend a hand and land to ease the city's transitional housing shortage, offering a five-year lease for $1 per year to construct a 150-bed interim housing project on one of his parcels.

Funding for food insecurity programs in San Jose has been severely cut after losing COVID-19-era dollars.

NAACP representatives have accused HomeFirst of racially profiling employees and voiced their anger in front of the homeless service provider's headquarters.

The SureStay Motel, which offers temporary housing and services to homeless seniors, is changing service providers for the third time in two years. HomeFirst will start providing food, case management and security, taking the reins from LifeMoves, another non-profit service provider who stepped in for Abode Services last October.

The construction of an inpatient psychiatric hospital that will serve Santa Clara County’s youngest residents is another step closer to becoming a reality.

Several anti-abortion crisis pregnancy centers are advertising abortion pill reversal. California Attorney General Rob Bonta calls the claims false advertising that mislead vulnerable patients.

Despite staffing challenges, Palo Alto agreed on Sept. 11 to expand and extend the Police Department’s recently launched PERT program, which partners police officers with behavioral clinicians on calls involving mental health crises.

California voters likely will see a mental health ballot measure on the March 2024 election. One would issue a $6 billion bond to create housing for people with mental illnesses.

Naloxone, a nasal spray that can reverse the adverse effects of opioids, became available in drug stores last week. The drug is sold under the brand names Narcan and RiVive and can be purchased over the counter.