Alabama expands mental health crisis aid to Tuscaloosa County

Tuscaloosa County is now home to one of two additional mental health crisis centers, further expanding the Alabama Crisis System of Care and providing new resources for patients and first-responders alike.

Fiscal year 2023, which begins Oct. 1, will have allocations for community mental health Centers at Indian Rivers Behavioral Health in Tuscaloosa County and SpectraCare Health Systems in Houston County.

These two new centers will add to the four existing centers in Huntsville, Birmingham, Montgomery and Mobile, now serving individuals with mental illness and substance use disorders at staged levels of care.

“The state of Alabama is proud to continue doing its part to offer top notch crisis care to people in need,” said Gov. Kay Ivey in a news release. “During my time as governor, I’ve placed a renewed focus on finding innovative ways to support Alabamians that find themselves battling mental health issues, and I have no doubt that these two new facilities are going change lives for the better.”

The two newly awarded centers in Tuscaloosa County (Region 2 – Tuscaloosa) and Houston County (Region 4 – Dothan) will serve large populations in the regions, with additional special populations, including veterans and young adults, officials said.

They join current crisis centers at AltaPointe Health in Mobile, WellStone in Huntsville, the Montgomery Area Mental Health Authority in Montgomery and the Jefferson, Blount, St. Clair (JBS) Mental Health Authority in Birmingham.