Bill > PR26-0108

Introduced Session

The John A. Wilson Building 1350 Pennsylvania Avenue, nw Washington, D.C. 20004 Christina Henderson Committee Member Councilmember, At-Large Facilities Chairperson, Committee on Health Human Services Transportation and the Environment Statement of Introduction Sense of the Council on Supporting Humane and Trauma-Informed Responses to Behavioral Health Crises Resolution of 2025 February 28, 2025 Today, I am pleased to introduce the Sense of the Council on Supporting Humane and Trauma- Informed Responses to Behavioral Health Crises Resolution of 2025, along with Chairman Phil Mendelson and Councilmembers Charles Allen, Anita Bonds, Wendell Felder, Matthew Frumin, Janeese Lewis George, Kenyan R. McDuffie, Brianne Nadeau, Zachary Parker, Brooke Pinto, and Robert C. White, Jr. This resolution calls for a more coordinated and effective response to behavioral health crises in the District—one that prioritizes care over criminalization and ensures that behavioral health emergencies receive the same urgency and quality of response as physical health emergencies. Every individual in crisis deserves timely, trauma-informed care from culturally and community-competent behavioral health professionals. Despite the availability of alternatives, most individuals experiencing a behavioral health crisis in the District still call 911 or seek care in hospital emergency departments, where they often face prolonged wait times for treatment or admission. When individuals call 911, the D.C. Office of Unified Communications (OUC) frequently dispatches the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) to these incidents. In 2022, MPD was sent to over 36,000 behavioral health crisis calls,

Committee Categories

Charles Allen (D)*,  Anita Bonds (D)*,  Wendell Felder (D)*,  Matt Frumin (D)*,  Janeese George (D)*,  Christina Henderson (I)*,  Kenyan McDuffie (I)*,  Phil Mendelson (D)*,  Brianne Nadeau (D)*,  Zachary Parker (D)*,  Brooke Pinto (D)*,  Robert White (D)*, 

Notice of Public Hearing Published in the DC Register (on 04/22/2025)

Official Document