California cannot fix homelessness, crime, addiction, or community decline without fixing mental health. Almost every major challenge we face as a state is made worse because our mental health system is broken, overloaded, or inaccessible. People are slipping through the cracks — and by the time help reaches them, it’s usually during a crisis.
We don’t just have a healthcare problem. We have a mental health access problem.
Ask anyone who has tried to get an appointment with a psychiatrist or find inpatient treatment for a loved one — the system makes it nearly impossible unless you have money, private insurance, or time to wait. People in real crisis don’t have that luxury.
Right now, California is reacting to mental health instead of preventing breakdowns and emergencies. We wait until a person overdoses, becomes a danger to themselves or others, or winds up on the street. Then we call it “support.” That is not care — that is damage control.
We Need a System Built on Intervention, Not Afterthought
One of the main reasons people stay stuck — whether in homelessness, addiction, or untreated trauma — is because the path to care is confusing, slow, and fragmented. There is no single entry point. No continuity. No accountability.
When people don’t know how to ask for help, or they’re too overwhelmed to try, they go without it.
When families try to help but hit a wall of paperwork, waitlists, or legal restrictions, they burn out.
When police become the default mental health response unit, we send professionals trained in enforcement, not intervention.
We can do better than this — and we have to.
My Approach: A Real Continuum of Care
Mental health must be treated the same way we treat physical health — openly, proactively, and with support that is easy to access before crisis hits.
My plan focuses on building a system that meets people where they are, not after they fall apart.
That means:
✅ On-demand access to mental health support statewide
✅ Early intervention instead of waiting for collapse
✅ Mandatory treatment for those who need it but cannot self-regulate
✅ Community-based care that prevents hospitalization and incarceration
✅ Family-involved planning — not shutting families out
Care shouldn’t start after someone loses their job, family, or home — it should start when the warning signs appear.
Rebuilding the Pipeline of Care
We need more than “programs.” We need a functioning ecosystem:
1. Localized Mental Health Response Teams
Instead of sending police as the first line of crisis response, trained mental health specialists will respond alongside law enforcement — with authority to stabilize, treat, and divert individuals into care.
2. Treatment Beds and Recovery Centers
We cannot mandate treatment without somewhere for people to go. That means reopening and expanding treatment centers, fiscal accountability for funding, and localized capacity so help is not counties away.
3. Court-Supported Care for Chronic Cases
If someone repeatedly cycles through addiction or psychotic episodes on the street, they need mandatory treatment, not another missed “referral.” This protects them and the public.
4. Family Restoration Support
Whenever possible, parents, spouses, or family members should be legally empowered to participate in the care plan — not shut out by red tape.
Mental Health and Healthcare Together
Mental health is not separate from healthcare — it is healthcare. But California’s system treats them like two different worlds.
Under my administration, healthcare reform will be based on three priorities:
Priority 1: People First
Care should be driven by patient outcomes, not billing codes or profit schedules. The focus is on healing, not paperwork or insurance metrics.
Priority 2: Holistic Wellness
Mental, physical, and emotional health are connected. We treat the whole person, not just a diagnosis or crisis moment.
Priority 3: Access Over Bureaucracy
Getting help should be simple and direct. The system must remove barriers, shorten wait times, and make care easier to reach — not harder.
