The city will open a 16-bed crisis stabilization center in April, according to a Feb. 12 news release from the mayor’s office. The center is expected to serve around 25 people with urgent mental health and substance use needs each day, freeing up space in the city’s emergency departments.
According to a Feb. 12 report from the San Francisco Chronicle, the city has owned the site where the crisis center will open for several years. The fentanyl state of emergency order will allow officials to bypass requirements for the Board of Supervisors to approve a lease agreement at the site.
The ordinance will also allow the city to solicit private funds to address behavioral health and substance use in the city, according to the mayor’s office.
The emergency declaration will allow the city to “cut red tape and move swiftly to save lives,” Mr. Lurie said.
