Adobe Stock
King County voters have approved a levy that will improve mental health services in King County, although final numbers have yet to be approved.
As of April 28, King County Elections staff report that 56.62 percent of King County voters supported the nine-year levy that will, among other things, create a regional network of five crisis care centers throughout the county and restore and increase mental health residential treatment beds.
“King County voters agree — we must build a stronger behavioral health system to meet the urgent and growing need for care," Executive Dow Constantine said in a press release. “With this strong approval, we will chart a path forward to provide the help people need and deserve.”
Residents will be assessed $0.145 per $1,000 of assessed value beginning in 2024, and the levy is anticipated to generate approximately $1.3 billion between 2024 and 2032. King County expects it will cost the median property owner $119 per year.
According to the press release, in 2021, more than 900 people waited for two or more days in county hospitals and emergency rooms because there were no open beds for behavioral health treatment. As of July 2022, people waited an average of 44 days. Since 2018, nearly one-third of mental health treatment beds have closed.
Once the crisis care centers open, a person in crisis can call 988 for resources, access a walk-in clinic, move to mid-level residential treatment and talk with behavioral health workers, according to the press release.
At the April Queen Anne Community Council meeting, District 7 County Councilmember Andrew Lewis, one of the sponsors of the bill, said the levy funding will be used to build five regional behavioral health crisis center: one in north King County, one in Seattle, one on the east side – Bellevue/Factoria/New Castle area, and one in south King County — Federal Way, Auburn, Kent area. The fifth will be focused on youth and their behavioral health challenges they are experiencing, specifically. While that center is likely to be in Seattle, no definitive sites have been selected yet.
All five centers would have to be set up and operational by 2029, but preferably sooner, Lewis said at the time.
Each center will be able to take people 24 hours a day on a walk-in basis under a “no-wrong door” policy of access, which is different from how many crisis response centers operate right now.
“Our current system is really reliant on emergency rooms and jails be in the King County Jail or municipal city jails,” Lewis said.
In 2018, King County had 355 residential treatment beds to serve people experiencing some sort of mental health crisis. That has declined to about 244, Lewis said. In total, Lewis said, about 100 new beds will be added to the whole system in the county, but hopefully more depending on how it is set up.
Each crisis care center will have designated responders at any given time to evaluate people in need.
Lewis said King County will be charged to implement the system, which is based on an extensive model used in Maricopa County, Ariz.
According to the press release, Constantine will propose the implementation plan by the end of 2023 for review and approval by the Metropolitan King County Council.