By Adam Bass
masslive.com
WORCESTER, Mass. — A Worcester city councilor wants a report on how the police department and the emergency communications and management department respond to mental health emergencies.
Councilor-at-Large Kathleen Toomey, the chair of the public safety committee, is asking City Manager Eric D. Batista to provide the report, according to the city council’s agenda for Tuesday night’s meeting.
| EARLIER: Lawsuit challenges Mass. police-first response to mental health 911 calls
Her request comes two weeks after three mental health organizations sued Worcester. The organizations claim the city’s 911 system violates multiple federal laws by sending armed officers to mental health crises.
Toomey said she filed the request to “make sure the correct information is made public.”
She said she could not comment on the lawsuit.
The lawsuit from the organizations claims that during an emergency involving suicidal thoughts, panic, psychosis or trauma, Worcester’s default action is to send armed police officers. The organizations, the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) of Central Massachusetts, NAMI-Massachusetts and the Parent/Professional Advocacy League , argue that officers are not trained to manage these types of situations and their presence alone can make the situation worse.
In comparison, those with physical emergencies, such as a heart attack or other medical crisis, are met by EMTs and paramedics trained to handle the situation, according to the lawsuit.
The organizations view this treatment as unfair and a violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act.
The city previously ran a pilot program where a crisis response team responded to mental health emergencies alongside police. The pilot was a collaboration between the city and UMass Memorial Health Community HealthLink, a community behavioral health center.
The crisis response program began in July 2023 and ended in the fall of 2024, with Community HealthLink providing a summary of the pilot to the city following its conclusion.
Worcester has a crisis intervention program, which is run by UMass Memorial Health Community HealthLink. The 911 system does not dispatch workers but police departments can request support from them at any point.
This is different from the pilot program, where 911 dispatchers were able to directly contact Community HealthLink’s crisis response team. Members of the team responded to mental health emergencies at the same time as police, with the two working together.
The plaintiffs want a federal judge to order Worcester to change its 911 system, ensuring mental health emergencies receive a clinical, unarmed response, similar to how physical health crises are addressed.
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