SAN DIEGO — Local leaders are considering declaring a crisis over the shortage of behavioral health beds in San Diego. These beds help provide treatment and resources to people experiencing psychiatric, behavioral or substance use disorders.
Declaring a crisis opens doors for the city to get more money from the state and federal government that could be used to hire more healthcare workers and open more beds. Last month, CBS 8 reported that San Diego first responders are overwhelmed by the volume of mental health calls.
San Diego City Councilmember Raul Campillo is the Chair of the Economic Development & Intergovernmental Relations Committee. He says the city is in dire need of more mental health services.
"Imagine any other physical kind of health ailment and we didn't have the medicine to address it," Campillo said.
He also said there's long wait lists and many people aren't getting the help they need.
"It's putting pressure on our emergency rooms, paramedics, fire and police department who are called in to help these people when there's not that type of resource," he said.
City officials said about a quarter of 9-1-1 calls are related to psychiatric, behavioral and substance use disorders. Yet since 2017, the city says it has lost nearly 3,000 behavioral health beds. The city's Economic Development & Intergovernmental Relations Committee voted unanimously to declare a crisis over the bed shortage.
"I know other counties have looked at this but as far as I know, we're the first city to declare this crisis," Campillo said.
Homeless advocates say expediting funding to behavioral health services would help the homeless crisis but it's only one piece of the puzzle.
"You can provide somebody mental health services but at the end of the day if there's not an affordable place to live then they're still on the street and still homeless," said Michael McConnell, a homeless advocate in San Diego.
McConnell said housing and services must work together to get people off the streets. The full City Council is expected to vote on whether to declare this crisis before the end of the year.
WATCH RELATED: Mental health calls overwhelm San Diego first responders