Voice of OC (https://voiceofoc.org/tag/orange-county-health-care-agency/)
Orange County Sheriff’s officials outspent their revenues by $33 million during this last fiscal year – prompting county officials to pull millions of dollars from other departments like the Health Care Agency to cover the shortfall.
The county said it was concerned a lack of oversight and care by Telecare Corp. staff was putting people at risk in a residential treatment center for people recovering from mental health crises. Both the county and contractor say the issues have since been fixed.
Telecare Corp. has repeatedly declined to comment on complaints it failed to provide health treatment it was supposed to, didn’t clean dirty rooms at a facility it was overseeing, and unnecessarily escalated a situation with a patient into a physical confrontation.
Orange County is well-known for its youth heroin problem. But opioid addiction is a serious predicament among OC seniors.
Homeless people staying at a motel, which the county is leasing as a mental health treatment facility, expressed confusion and uncertainty about what would happen next.
The proposed mental health center is seen by advocates and officials as a major step toward addressing a severe shortage of mental health service options in Orange County. There was no word Tuesday on when services will start at the property.
County officials and lawyers for homeless people said they planned to work over the three-day holiday weekend to help ensure any homeless people who want motel rooms before the Tuesday deadline can quickly move into them.
In response to a dramatic upswing in sexually transmitted diseases, schools and community groups serving low-income students are responding with no-nonsense educational approaches that factor in cultural beliefs and practices.
The recommendations are aimed at diverting mentally ill people from jails into treatment, which county officials say would improve public safety by reducing crime, while also saving taxpayer dollars.
The proposed center – next to a freeway, office buildings, and the Santa Ana River – is seen by advocates and officials as a major step toward addressing a severe shortage of mental health services.