Join us for a Teach-In on Mobile Crisis and Community Safety
In the wee hours of the morning on June 6, 2024, the Philadelphia City Council took its first official step towards passing Mayor Parker’s FY2025 budget. Some very good things emerged from the budget negotiated between the mayor and council, such as funding for affordable housing at UC Townhomes, rental assistance, subsidies for home repairs, supplemental funding for the Community College of Philadelphia, and support for Philadelphians accessing reproductive healthcare.
To our great disappointment, funding for non-police mental health first responders remained flat. Amistad Law Project and the Philadelphia Treatment Not Trauma coalition pushed for an additional $10 million in funding to the Department of Behavioral Health and Intellectual Disability Services (DBHIDS) for the desperately needed expansion of mobile crisis teams. Unfortunately, DBHIDS did not use the $3 million increase they received last year towards staffing additional crisis teams and the mayor’s proposed budget did not include funding to expand the program. The city’s failure to increase the level of service for mobile crisis teams means that Philadelphians experiencing a mental health crisis will continue to wait an average of one hour and seven minutes for help––if help comes at all. This is shameful.
During her campaign, Mayor Parker voiced support for social workers responding to mental health calls. Every member of City Council we spoke to agreed that this program is vital and expressed dismay at the unacceptable wait times. DBHIDS is dissatisfied, stating that their target response time is 30 minutes.
It is past the time for simply talking about the issue––the city must make the necessary investments if they are committed to change.
We have no intention of falling back or slowing down. We are more determined than ever to ensure that our communities can access non-police mental health crisis response. Join us on July 22nd from 6:00-8:00 PM at 123 S. 51st St. for a Teach-In on Crisis Response and Community Safety. At the teach-in, we will guide neighbors through the process of accessing mobile crisis teams in Philadelphia and be in conversation with community leaders who practice crisis response in their own ways. Register below to join us.
