Following a Request for Proposals this fall, the New Jersey Department of Human Services recently announced the recipients of grants to fund 988 Mobile Crisis Outreach Response Teams (MCORTs) around the state. 

Funded by the DHS Division of Mental Health and Addiction Services, the grants will establish a system to respond to adults in non-life-threatening situations who have contacted the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline. Services will be available 24 hours a day, every day of the year. 

Approximately $13.6 million in grants was awarded to: 

• Bridgeway Behavioral Health Services 
  $1.3 million: to serve Hunterdon, Somerset and Warren counties (Region 5)
  $1.3 million: to serve Morris and Sussex counties (Region 7)
• CarePlus NJ 
  $3.2 million: to serve Bergen and Passaic counties (Region 8)
• Collaborative Support Programs of New Jersey 
  $2 million: to serve Monmouth and Ocean counties (Region 4)
  $2 million: to serve Middlesex and Union counties (Region 6)
• Legacy Treatment Services 
  $1.3 million: to serve Cumberland, Cape May and Atlantic counties (Region 1)
  $1.3 million: to serve Camden, Gloucester and Salem counties (Region 2)
  $1.3 million: to serve Burlington and Mercer counties (Region 3)

According to the RFP, MCORTs are to be made up of a two-person team in the field (a trained peer support specialist and a bachelor’s level professional) under remote supervision by a master’s level supervisor providing clinical backup.  

The RFP also listed the goals of the network, which are to : 

• Provide access to timely crisis intervention services; 
• De-escalate the crisis and stabilize those in need; 
• Prevent hospitalization, re-hospitalization, incarceration and intervention by law enforcement whenever it is safe to do so; 
• Deliver equitable behavioral crisis services to all New Jerseyans.

“Our extensive experience in crisis response and interventions will enable us to quickly establish Mobile Crisis Outreach Response Teams in Bergen and Passaic Counties to support individuals seeking help through the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline,” CarePlus NJ President and CEO Brigitte Johnson said in a Feb. 5 announcement about the funding for the Paramus-based service provider. 

“This grant provides vital funding to help us expand our crisis programs and respond to non-life-threatening mental health, substance use or suicidal emergencies without law enforcement or other emergency personnel, connecting people to proper care, and improving overall outcomes,” Johnson added. 

According to CarePlus, contracts for the new network are set to begin in March. 

Launched in July 2022, the 988 national suicide prevention hotline is available 24/7 for call, text or chat for those experiencing a mental health-related or suicidal crisis, or those looking to help a loved one.