The city of Berkeley’s Mental Health division is seeking public input on a plan to offer mobile health services at the city’s homeless encampments.
The proposed mobile wellness center would offer services including medication counseling, peer-led wellness services, help with public benefits, food and hygiene support and health-related enrichment programs.
According to a homeless count done by the city in January 2017, an estimated 1,000 people, or 1 percent of the city’s population, are unhoused.
Using input from those who have been homeless or close to it, this effort is a short-term pilot project to increase wellness among people who are unhoused.
The city said those who have experienced homelessness have said that services should support wellness in creative ways, without assuming that psychiatric or clinical intervention is appropriate for everyone.
The wellness plan outlines the use of $2.8 million in funding over a five-year period from the Mental Health Services Act (MHSA), state legislation approved by voters in November 2004 that places a 1 percent tax on every dollar of personal income over $1 million.
The final plan will be submitted to the Berkeley City Council and the State Mental Health Oversight and Accountability Commission for approval.
The public is invited to provide input by mail, 1521 University Ave., Berkeley, CA 94703; email; or phone, 510-981-7644, through Jan. 26; or at a virtual public hearing, scheduled for 7 p.m. Jan. 27 on Zoom, meeting ID: 837 1925 3558.