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1 <br /> 0RD-2025 -032 <br /> ORANGE COUNTY <br /> BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS <br /> ACTION AGENDA ITEM ABSTRACT <br /> Meeting Date : October 7 , 2025 <br /> Action Agenda <br /> Item No . 8-q <br /> SUBJECT : Approval of Budget Amendment #2-A to Fund the Mobile Crisis Team Pilot <br /> ( CARE ) with Grant Funding Awarded to Alliance Healthcare <br /> DEPARTMENT : Emergency Services , County <br /> Manager <br /> ATTACHMENT(S) : INFORMATION CONTACT . <br /> FY 2025 -26 Alliance Health Budget Caitlin Fenhagen , 919 -245 -2303 <br /> Form Expansion Kirby Saunders , 919-245-6123 <br /> August 22 , 2025 Memorandum from Kim Woodward , 919 -245 -6133 <br /> NCDHHS <br /> Year-To - Date Budget Summary <br /> PURPOSE : To approve Budget Amendment # 2-A to provide grant funding for an additional year <br /> and expansion of the Mobile Crisis Pilot — the Crisis Assistance , Response and Engagement <br /> (CARE ) Team — in collaboration with Alliance Healthcare and the Town of Chapel Hill . <br /> BACKGROUND : The CARE Team is a three person mobile unit that responds to 911 and crisis <br /> calls in lieu of law enforcement or emergency medical services ( EMS ) . The mobile team includes <br /> a crisis counselor, a peer support specialist and an emergency medical technician ( EMT) . The <br /> mobile team is complemented by a fourth position , a crisis counselor who is embedded in the 911 <br /> Call Center . The CARE Team is a collaboration between Orange County and the Town of Chapel <br /> Hill . The Pilot started operation in May 2024 under the direct supervision of the Chapel Hill Police <br /> Crisis Division , and with joint oversight by leadership at the Chapel Hill Police Department Crisis <br /> Division , Orange County Emergency Services , County EMS and the Criminal Justice Resource <br /> Department . <br /> Alliance Healthcare provided start- up costs for the CARE Team in FY 2023 -24 and sought and <br /> received a grant from the N . C . Department of Health and Human Services ( NCDHHS ) , Divison of <br /> Mental Health , Developmental Disabilities and Substance Use Services , for Orange County in the <br /> amount of $ 579 , 500 for FY 2024 -25 . The CARE Team ' s coverage was limited to Chapel Hill calls <br /> and the hours of operation were from 8 : 00am to 4 : 30pm . <br /> In FY 2024 -25 , the CARE Team responded to 1 , 040 events and served 349 unique individuals . <br /> 93 % of the responses did not result in any criminal charge . Only 51/o of the responses required <br /> transport to a hospital for a medical emergency , and only 71/o required transport to a hospital for <br /> behavioral health care . <br /> Orange County and the Town of Chapel Hill requested expansion funding for FY 2025 -26 that <br /> would allow the CARE Team to provide coverage to Carrboro and and extend the service hours . <br />