First, a reminder to everyone: please stay home as much as possible and wash your hands regularly. And while face coverings are not a substitute for physical distancing or frequent hand washing, wearing some kind of face covering could provide additional benefit when you absolutely must leave home for essential activities.
Please know that your County government is working hard to assist you during this difficult time and in the days and weeks ahead. We understand that many of our neighbors are in need of help during this difficult time, and many of you are looking for resources to maneuver through this shutdown, whether as an employer, employee, or business owner.
In response to this, Chairwoman Michelle Steel and I announced the launch of covid19info.ocgov.com last week. This website offers a wealth of resources and valuable information for everyone, from businesses to individuals, and it will be updated regularly to better assist county residents. The County has also extended hours for programs.
But we know that this crisis has put a lot of strain on all of us. Maintaining our mental well-being is more vital now than ever. Last Tuesday, the Orange County Board of Supervisors voted to support my proposal to create new mental health, physical health, and substance use programs to address the stress, anxiety, fear, and mental health challenges resulting from COVID-19.
As you may recall, in 2019 the County entered into a public private partnership called Be Well OC to create a simple central hub of resource to access support services and mental health education in the county. I thank Be Well OC for answering this call to action. Now, we need to allocate resources so that Be Well OC can deliver the much-needed services, as we had envisioned.
Yesterday, I sent a letter to Governor Newsom urging him to institute the recommendations made by the Steinberg Institute that would temporarily allow counties flexibility in the use of funds under the Mental Health Services Act (MHSA). With this, Orange County can increase our capacity to provide much needed mental health services and use our MHSA funds, wherever the need is the greatest.
In addition, I requested that the Governor allow MHSA funding to be temporarily permitted to cover substance use disorder programs.
Allowing MHSA funds to cover both mental health and substance use disorder programs enables Orange County to create a holistic mental health system that is so needed at this time.
An issue focused in greater detail today at this press conference is the County’s response to homelessness during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Last week Governor Newsom launched “Project Roomkey,” which aims to provide financial support to counties for hotel and motel rooms to protect our unhoused population.
But even prior to the Governor’s directive, Orange County has been working on finding hotel and motel partners to temporarily house homeless individuals throughout our county. The Orange County Board of Supervisors has been working proactively from the first day of this crisis to ensure the safety and security of all of Orange County’s residents, including those who currently do not have a home.
During today’s press conference, Jason Austin, our new Director of Care Coordination, provided an update on all County actions related to Project Roomkey and Supervisor Lisa Bartlett provided updates as it relates to Project Roomkey and her district’s response. HCA Deputy Director David Souleles provided the latest updates on the County’s COVID-19 response and Sherriff Don Barnes provided an update on the jails and court operations.
You can view the press conference here: https://www.facebook.com/ocgov/
