A Brief Overview Of CARE Court

Community Assistance, Recovery and Empowerment (CARE) Court is a new framework to get people with mental health and substance use disorders the support and care they need. The CARE Act is a way to allow individuals (“petitioners”) to request court-ordered treatment, services, support, and a housing plan for certain people 18+ who have untreated schizophrenia or another psychotic disorder and who meet certain health, safety, and other eligibility criteria.

CARE plans ensure participants receive a broad range of necessary services, including short-term stabilization medications, wellness and recovery supports, and connection to other social services such as housing. CARE recognizes that to serve those with the most complex behavioral health conditions, we must do the hard work of prioritizing those who need help the most, providing a comprehensive CARE plan that honors self-determination to the greatest extent possible, and holding ourselves accountable to delivering services and housing that are key to long term stability and recovery.

Good News!

NAMI CC’s “Leave No One Behind” program has been awarded a $200,000 grant from the City of Concord (the largest city in the county) to address the needs of the Unsheltered. It is our desire to spread this approach across the county and will continue the work in Antioch (second largest city in the county) where we launched the “Leave No One Behind” program three years ago.

We’d like to hire two homeless outreach coordinators to position themselves to start addressing the needs of individuals across our county, and getting them, when appropriate, connected to Care Court. This is an effort we wish to accomplish. We want to complement the work Contra Costa County Behavioral Health is doing.

*We recognize that many of our staff members have been where these individuals are, so we know that we carry the skill set, and more importantly, the empathy and compassion, to make a difference.

Who Is Eligible To Submit A CARE Court Petition?

At NAMI CC we will be supporting family members who want to submit petitions to get their relatives treatment, but all of the following people can also submit a petition: roommates, clinicians, behavioral health departments, first responders or the respondent themselves. This last one is interesting and basically means that a peer with an untreated psychotic disorder, who wants to be connected to services and is currently not receiving them, can submit a petition for themselves.

Where Do We Direct People Who Need Help?

We want to encourage you to start with us for the support that you may need to build a strong case for the needs not being met.

How to file a CARE-100 Form to Begin CARE Act Proceedings:

www.cchealth.org/services-and-programs/behavioral-health/care-act

The forms are listed on the page under “Resources” as CARE 100 – Petition to Commence Care Act Proceedings and CARE 100- Mental Health Declaration.

The petition is long and can be somewhat difficult for people. We can direct people who need help filling out their petition to the Superior Court’s Self-Help Center. I went to the courthouse today and met with Betty Jaw, the lawyer responsible for helping people with CARE petitions. She let me know that there are no drop-ins, but that people can make a 30 minute appointment which can be in-person or on Zoom. They will be ready to meet with people starting December 1st.

CARE Court Self-Help Center’s contact information:

Email: care_act_inquiries@contracosta.courts.ca.gov

Voicemail Line: (925) 608-2066

The Self-Help Center is a free of charge service that will help people by answering their questions, getting them started on filling out their paperwork, looking over their paperwork, and helping them file their finished petition.

Contra Costa County Care Court Contact: Behavioral Health Services Director, Suzanne Tavano: (925) 957-5169

A3 Miles Hall Community Crisis Hub Chief of Behavioral Health Crisis Services, Chad Pierce: (510) 414-6460.

For more information, here are two good resources:
Care Court’s homepage at www.chhs.ca.gov/care-act and www.courts.ca.gov/48654.htm

NAMI CC Staff Contacts for CARE Court

If you need support while you apply for your loved one to enter Care Court, please contact any of these individuals. Each individual is capable of supporting individuals across the county. However, for a loved one who spends most of their time in Antioch and Concord areas, please contact the coordinator with a service area of “Antioch.”