(The Center Square) – Seattle is launching a dual-dispatch emergency responses pilot program to provide people in need with more appropriate assistance amid the mayor’s request for more funding.
The program utilizes Seattle’s newest public safety department: the Community Assisted Response and Engagement department, also known as CARE.
The CARE team features behavioral health specialists, who have prior field experience and higher education credentials in behavioral health.
The dual dispatch pilot program pairs CARE responders with Seattle Police Department officers when the 911 Center answers an emergency call. When officers ensure the scene is safe, they can respond to other calls while the CARE team provide services.
The pilot program will cover all areas of Seattle. The initial focus is on the Chinatown-International District and the SODO District. Dual dispatch will operate from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m., which the city claims is a schedule that matches where and when the most frequent calls related to mental health crises occur.
Harrell has requested a 30% budget increase for the CARE team in 2025 as part of his budget proposal. The mayor’s 2024 budget would fund $26.5 million for the new department, which has a current budget of $20.5 million.
The increased funding would go toward adding 13 full-time staff members, making technology upgrades and funding enhanced violence intervention efforts.
Seattle Police Chief Adrian Diaz signaled the department’s excitement in participating in the dual-dispatch pilot program.
“Having the CARE team respond directly and be available as an additional resource when not dispatched to a call will provide our officers with the resources necessary to identify and stabilize underlying conditions leading to 911 responses,” Diaz said in a statement.
The city’s dispatch team will decide what calls are eligible for a CARE response. According to the city, warranted calls include “low-acuity welfare checks, calls that don’t need enforcement, and others that are non-violent, non-emergent, and non-medical.”
These calls are coded as wellness checks and person down calls. There have been 2,686 person down calls and 5,533 wellness check calls so far in 2023.
