Monday, Mayor London Breed announced a proposal for a new street response team that will provide medical and social service help for people who require immediate assistance, but do not have emergent behavioral health care needs.
This proposal is part the City's effort to "implement alternatives to police responses to non-violent calls."
One of the highest number of calls San Francisco police officers respond to are "well-being checks," according to the city's data close to 18,000 calls in 2019. "The law enforcement officer would find out that they actually need medical care or they are experiencing a behavioral emergency," said Lieutenant Jonathan Baxter with the San Francisco Fire department.
The Street Wellness Response Team will consist of community paramedics and EMTs from the San Francisco Fire Department and Homeless Outreach Team members from the Department of Homelessness and Supportive Housing.