SPRINGFIELD, Vt. – Health Care & Rehabilitation Services (HCRS) has been approved for $3.6 million in grant funding from the Vermont Department of Mental Health to develop a new mental health urgent care center in Brattleboro, creating a much-needed, community-based option for adults and youth experiencing mental health, substance use, and co-occurring crises.
HCRS plans to begin offering 24/7 walk-in mental health urgent care services in January 2027, with additional components coming online as implementation progresses. The project will also expand residential stabilization capacity for children and youth, with four short-term residential beds planned as part of the initiative.
“Expanding access to urgent mental health care for Vermonters is essential,” said Department of Mental Health Commissioner Emily Hawes, “and this work goes beyond just expanding access, as it opens options for those most in need at times when they are most in need.”
The new center will address a critical gap in southeastern Vermont’s crisis continuum: a therapeutic place for people to go when they need more support than can be provided through Mobile Crisis, but emergency department or inpatient care may not be necessary.
“For years, we have worked to ensure that people experiencing a mental health or substance-use crisis have a place to call and someone who can respond. This new funding allows us to build the next critical piece: a safe, therapeutic place to go when someone needs more support,” said HCRS CEO Anne Bilodeau. “We are incredibly excited about what this will mean for individuals and families throughout southeastern Vermont. It gives our communities another option for helping people receive the right care, in the right setting, at the right time.”
The mental health urgent care center will provide adults and youth with peer support, crisis intervention and stabilization, medical support, care coordination, assessment, and connection to ongoing services. The center will also support individuals experiencing co-occurring mental health and substance use conditions. The center is specifically designed for mental health and substance use crisis care and is not intended to replace emergency medical care for physical health emergencies.
Four short-term crisis stabilization beds will be dedicated to children and youth who need a safe, therapeutic level of support but do not require inpatient psychiatric hospitalization.
The center will operate in close coordination with 988, HCRS’ Mobile Crisis services, local hospitals, outpatient providers, schools, peer support organizations, first responders, housing providers, and other community partners. HCRS will work with regional partners to establish referral pathways, warm handoffs, and coordinated follow-up to help individuals move more seamlessly between levels of care.
The initiative responds to needs identified through HCRS’ Community Needs Assessment and regional crisis data, including high emergency-department utilization, barriers to timely crisis stabilization, and the need for additional community-based alternatives. Southeastern Vermont has experienced particularly high emergency-department utilization associated with mental health crises, underscoring the need for another option for individuals who require immediate support but not hospital-level care.
HCRS is currently working to finalize leased space in Brattleboro for the Center. Over the coming months, HCRS will prepare the facility, recruit and train staff, develop operational workflows, and continue coordinating with community partners in preparation for the January launch. The new center is expected to create approximately 34 positions, and a job fair is taking place on Tuesday, Sept. 29, from 10 a.m. – 3 p.m., at the Brooks Memorial Library in Brattleboro, to support recruitment. Visit the www.hcrs.org career page for more information.
Additional information about the center, including its location, access, available services, and referral processes, will be shared as implementation progresses.