Welcome to CARE Act Court
Community Assistance, Recovery, and Empowerment (CARE) Act Court offers a supportive community and dedicated mental health services for people in Alameda County who are living with untreated schizophrenia or other psychotic disorders.
IN THIS SECTION | CARE Act Court | File a CARE Act Court Petition | CARE Act FAQs | CARE Act Resources
Learn How CARE Act Court Can Help
Under the CARE Act, you or your loved ones can seek help from the Superior Court of Alameda County. The Act connects eligible individuals to essential services like mental health care and housing assistance through a voluntary CARE Agreement or Plan, guided by a compassionate judicial officer. This initiative offers a personalized and supportive path to recovery and empowerment.
Eligibility Criteria
- 18 years of age or older.
- Diagnosed with schizophrenia or other associated psychotic disorders and currently experiencing symptoms. (See list of eligible diagnoses below.)
- Not clinically stabilized in ongoing treatment.
- The individual's mental health is substantially deteriorating, and they are unlikely to survive safely in the community without supervision AND/OR need services and support to prevent relapse and deterioration.
- Participation in a CARE Plan is the least restrictive alternative and the individual is likely to benefit from participation in a CARE Plan.
- If a person otherwise meets the criteria above, a pending criminal action does not disqualify the person from CARE Act Court.
The person who is subject to the petition for the CARE Act Court process is referred to as the "respondent." If you do not meet the requirements above, options for assistance are still available at Alameda County Behavioral Health.
Learn more about CARE Act Court from Alameda County Behavioral Health.
CARE Act Court is Here to Help; But it May Not Be for Everyone
CARE Act Court does not apply to all diagnoses. The CARE Act focuses on a narrow community of vulnerable Californians with the most severe mental health conditions to provide supportive services before people from this community become involved with the criminal legal system, are committed to a state hospital, or end up in conservatorship.
Eligible diagnoses may include:
- Schizophrenia
- Schizoaffective disorder
- Schizophreniform disorder
- Brief psychotic disorder
- Delusional disorder
- Schizotypal personality disorder
- Catatonia associated with another mental disorder
- Unspecified catatonia
- Other specified or unspecified schizophrenia spectrum and other psychotic disorders
Unless a person also has a diagnosis from the list above, the following conditions DO NOT meet CARE Act criteria:
- Psychosis due to traumatic brain injury, autism, dementia or another condition
- Catatonia associated with another medical condition
- Major depression or bipolar disorder with psychotic features
- Substance use disorders
Who Can Petition
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Family Members
- Person with whom respondent resides
- Spouse, parent, sibling, child, grandparent or other individual in place of a parent
- Respondent (i.e., self-petition)
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Community Member
- First responder (e.g., peace officer, firefighter, paramedic, mobile crisis response, homeless outreach worker
- Director of a hospital, or designee, in which respondent is hospitalized (including for Welfare and Institutions Code 5150 and 5250 holds)
- Licensed behavioral health professional, or designee treating respondent for mental illness
- Director of a public/charitable organization providing behavioral health services to the respondent in whose institution the respondent resides
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Government or County Official
- County behavioral health director, or designee (e.g., Alameda County Behavior Health)
- Public guardian, or designee
- Director of adult protective services, or designee
- Director of a California Indian health services program, California tribal behavioral health department, or designee
- Judge of a tribal court located in CA, or designee
