$76 million awarded to build behavioral health campus in Coachella
The Riverside University Health System today announced the county has received a conditional $76 million award from the state to build a behavioral health campus in Coachella.
It's a "once in a generation opportunity to build the facilities needed in Riverside County for those with behavioral health needs," RUHS Behavioral Health Department Director Dr. Matthew Chang said in a statement.
The award was part of the Behavioral Health Continuum Infrastructure Program's competitive grant opportunity, according to RUHS.
RUHS-Behavioral Health worked with community partners to submit applications to the BHCIP program for "recovery villages."
Besides the Coachella campus, a recovery village would be located in Hemet under the plan.
The projects would provide substance disorder treatment services, mental and physical health treatment, vocational training, housing for families and kennels for residents' pets.
The grants will support programs that "reduce homelessness, incarceration, unnecessary hospitalizations and in-patient days and improve outcomes for people with behavioral health conditions by expanding access to community-based treatment," according to the Department of Healthcare Services.
Among the conditions for the award, RUHS would need to report data to the Department of Health Care Services within 90 days of each quarter for the first five years and operate for a minimum of 30 years as a behavioral health campus.
