Photo: Scott Smeltzer / Staff Photographer)
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Newport Beach will soon have its own mobile mental health service response team with the approval of a $1.2-million contract between the city and Mind OC, the nonprofit that operates Be Well OC.
City staff said the price tag of the program has been offset by an anonymous donation of $132,000, which is expected to finance the van and initial set-up costs. Federal grants will be used to pay for $717,000 and the remaining difference of $376,000 is expected to come from funding allocated for the bridge shelter at 3175 Airway Ave., run in partnership with neighboring Costa Mesa.
The Be Well OC partnership is expected to launch in December and will mirror services offered in Huntington Beach, which officially launched the first such mobile crisis response team with Be Well OC in September. It will initially be a one-year pilot program.
It is based on the Crisis Assistance Helping Out On The Streets (CAHOOTS) program that has been successful in Eugene, Ore.
The cities of Garden Grove and Irvine are also in the process of launching their own mobile teams.
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