Behavioral health specialists with the Deschutes County Crisis Stabilization Center will soon be responding to mental health emergencies without law enforcement officers alongside them after the Bend City Council approved $328,000 in additional funding for the center.

Officials are still deciding which emergencies will be handled by mental health experts and which will be handled by Bend Police, but the city funds will enable the center to hire staff for the Mobile Crisis Assessment Team and operate the center around the clock.

The county has had a mobile crisis team on board for 18 years, said Holly Harris, Deschutes County crisis program manager. But the team wasn’t able to respond to all locations or all non-criminal calls without law enforcement, Harris said.

“With this funding and money from the Oregon Health Authority, we will be able to add staff, case managers and peer support specialists who can respond with mobile teams in pairs,” Harris said.

“The teams won’t respond when there’s weapons involved or there is a dangerous situation.”

The $328,000, approved by the council on Wednesday, comes from the city’s American Rescue Plan Act funds.

The program is designed to keep someone experiencing a mental health crisis from spending time in a hospital emergency room, or in jail. Police are often called to respond to these kinds of 911 calls.

Since the center opened in 2020, more than 7,000 callers have been helped by mental health professionals, rather than law enforcement, Harris said. And that was without the additional personnel. Harris said 4% of the individuals coming to the center have said that they would have ended their lives without the support of the center.

“It makes us feel like we’re doing the right thing,” Harris said. “We hear story after story of lives changing when they get the help they need.”

Not only do behavioral health specialists roll out on calls, but the center has five recliners to offer rest to anyone experiencing a mental health crisis. At the center, assessed individuals meeting specific criteria can shower, eat a meal and talk to a counselor who can help address issues and get the individual connected to services, Harris said.

Bend Police have about 100 sworn officers, said Sheila Miller, police spokeswoman. Of those, about all but 11 have gone through a 40-hour crisis-intervention course, Miller said. By the end of the year, 98% of the officers will be trained.

On Sept. 13, Oregon was the first state to receive expanded federal Medicaid funding for mental health crisis teams for the next three years. Other communities like Portland and Eugene have programs like Deschutes County. With the ability to respond 24/7 without law enforcement, the mobile team will be able to qualify for the funding, Harris said.

“When an individual has access to care when they need it, it reduces the need to be in an emergency room,” Harris said. “Generally we see better outcomes.”

Bend Police Chief Mike Krantz praised the funding.

“This helps the city and Bend Police help our community by connecting people experiencing a mental health crisis with behavioral and mental health professionals,” Krantz said in a prepared statement. “It also allows law enforcement professionals to focus on the work they’re trained to do.”