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Community Assistance, Recovery, and Empowerment (CARE) Act

The Community Assistance, Recovery, and Empowerment (CARE) Act is a new civil court process to help individuals with severe mental illness access behavioral health, medication support, and housing services.

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FAQ

The Community Assistance, Recovery, and Empowerment (CARE) Act program creates a new pathway to deliver mental health and substance use services to individuals who are diagnosed with schizophrenia or other psychotic disorders and are not engaged in treatment.  Through a new state law, the CARE Act creates a process for families, clinicians, first responders, and others to file a petition with the civil court to connect individuals (ages 18+) to outpatient treatment if they meet criteria and would benefit from the program. 

A person must meet all these conditions to be eligible for CARE Court:

  • 18 years old and over
  • A diagnosis of schizophrenia spectrum disorder or other psychotic disorder
  • Not clinically stabilized in on-going voluntary treatment
  • Unlikely to survive safely in the community, condition is deteriorating, or in need of supports to prevent deterioration.

For more information on CARE eligibility go to:  https://www.courts.ca.gov/documents/CARE-Act-Eligibility-Criteria.pdf 

In Santa Clara County, CARE process can be accessed with the help of the Behavioral Health Services Department CARE Outreach team by:

  • Calling (800) 704-0900 and selecting Option 3 or
  • Emailing the outreach team at  [email protected]

Eligible petitioners can petition the court directly:

Participation is up to 12 months but may be extended based on individual circumstances. The Court will conduct progress hearings throughout the 12-month program and may modify the CARE Plan based on the person’s needs. At the end of the 12-month program, County Behavioral Health Services Department will work with the individual to develop a graduation plan or extend their CARE Plan for up to an additional 12 months if needed.

There is no cost for filing a CARE Petition. If the person is a Medi-Cal beneficiary, the County’s Mental Health Plan will cover the services provided. Persons who are privately insured or who have other insurance types (such as VA or Medicare) will access services according to the terms of those programs. The law requires coverage of CARE Court services.

Homelessness is not a requirement to be eligible for CARE, and not all people experiencing homelessness will be eligible. When a participant is accepted into CARE, their CARE Plan can include community-based resources, including peer support, counseling, stabilization medications, and housing supports as needed. 

CARE is a new civil court process that opens a new pathway to access existing community-based services.

There is considerable overlap in CARE and AOT eligibility criteria and both are civil court processes for helping individuals benefit from community- based services. See the table below for some differences:

 CAREAOT
Eligibility requirements - diagnosisDiagnosis of psychotic disorderSevere mental illness, not specifically limited to psychotic disorder type
Eligibility requirements - otherNot clinically stabilized in voluntary treatment History of non-compliance with voluntary treatment
ProcessBegins by filing CARE petition – CARE Outreach is optionalBegins with AOT referral for triage and outreach by BHSD – AOT petition is a measure of last resort
Court OrderThe petitioned individual is subject to the court order and the BHSD could potentially be subject to a court orderOnly the petitioned individual is subject to the court order
Implementation – ServicesPathway to existing services – not a new service programNew service program for community-based, multidisciplinary, intensive outpatient services

Myth Busters

Fact: Our goal is to engage people when and where they need it most. This is why we created an outreach team to support clients and qualified petitioners even before the filing of the CARE petition.  We seek to voluntarily engage our clients who have fallen through the cracks of our mental health system in high quality, comprehensive care. If petition is filed, CARE Court provides us with an opportunity to serve people who need help most and work with clients to help them towards recovery, where they can remain in our community and thrive. Even treatment provided under a CARE order is essentially voluntary; the individual must decide to engage and participate, the treatment providers cannot force anyone to do that.  CARE Court is a path into Outpatient programs.  All services require some willingness on the part of the respondent. Our goal is to keep people in the community. 

To contact BHSD CARE Outreach team:
Call (800) 704-0900 and select Option #3
Or email: [email protected]  

Fact: CARE Agreements and CARE Plans are a collaborative process that include the client. This means we partner with clients, their legal counsel, and their CARE Supporter (if any) as we work with them to achieve their goals through a collaborative process and ensure the best treatment for them possible. We personalize every treatment plan to best meet our clients’ needs and set them on the path towards recovery.

Fact: CARE Court is a year-long program and can be extended up to an additional 12 months. Participants meet with the Court at most once a month. Court hearings are structured to allow the client to give input and the goal of a court hearing is to encourage the client to engage, not to admonish or punish the individual for non-compliance. Upon graduation, services will remain in place at the discretion of the client. Our goal is to help people recover. This means participants achieve stability and are able to thrive in the community.

Fact: Having a criminal justice history or currently being involved in the criminal justice system is not a requirement to be eligible for CARE services. 

Fact: CARE court participants will receive treatment with a whatever-it-takes approach such that most participants will engage because they see the services as beneficial to themselves and their goals. Individuals involved in the CARE process can only be referred for conservatorship if they meet the criteria for grave disability and have been through the LPS commitment process (5150, 5250, etc.) but have not stabilized. An LPS conservatorship cannot be ordered through CARE court.

Fact: Psychiatric medications can be recommended by a psychiatrist and become a part of the CARE plan which the individual either agrees to or is ordered to. However, psychiatric medications cannot be forced on an individual under a CARE Court order and there is no consequence for a patient not taking the recommended medications. CARE court participants do not necessarily lack the capacity to make informed decisions about psychiatric medications. 

Additional support such as a Family Resource Guide or how to fill out a petition and training materials can be accessed via the CARE Act Resource Center at care-act.org