Expiring Federal Funds Threaten Chicago’s Alternative Crisis Response Effort
Mayor commits to maintaining funding for the CARE program, and to improving it
This story is part of Policing the Vulnerable, a package of stories reported and produced in collaboration with Medill Investigative Lab-Chicago, the Invisible Institute and South Side Weekly.
Federal pandemic relief dollars that help pay for a Chicago program that sends clinicians instead of police to mental health crises are expiring, and under President Donald Trump’s administration, new funds for mental health and police alternatives seem unlikely.
Mayor Brandon Johnson has pledged to expand the Crisis Assistance Response & Engagement (CARE) program citywide; currently it serves only a limited number of neighborhoods. But the likely end of federal support means the city will need to find millions of dollars to sustain it—and even more to pay for the proposed expansion. A state program that provides funding for mental health crisis services is a potential source to help fill the gap.