Canton Police Secure $161K Grant For Mental Health Crisis Program

CANTON, MA — Canton’s police clinician program will continue through fiscal 2027, but its long-term future remains uncertain.

The Canton Police Department received a $161,000 Massachusetts Department of Mental Health grant to fund co-response clinician services through June 30 of next year. Continuing clinician Bartlett’s full-time position in fiscal 2028 and beyond will depend entirely on local funding, according to the department.

The program pairs officers with a clinician during mental health and substance-use calls, allowing residents to receive clinical care instead of being taken to an emergency department or arrested when appropriate.

During its first 10 months, the program completed 77 mental health evaluations and 148 follow-up interactions, according to figures included in an Oct. 22 Board of Selectmen memo. The department said 53 residents were diverted from emergency department visits and 22 were diverted from arrest.

Those diversions produced an estimated $273,682 in avoided costs, exceeding the clinician position’s annual grant funding, according to the department.

Police said the program also allows officers to return to patrol instead of spending hours at hospitals, booking detainees, providing court testimony or conducting hospital watches. Clinical support may also help officers distinguish symptoms of a behavioral health crisis from resistance and make better decisions about de-escalation and treatment, the department said.

Massachusetts jail diversion programs return nearly $3 in avoided system costs for every $1 spent, according to 2025 data cited by the state Department of Mental Health. Canton police also cited research linking co-response programs with fewer arrests, fewer repeat 911 calls and a reduction in repeat involuntary psychiatric detentions.

The department credited Sgt. Anderson with identifying the grant opportunity and preparing the successful application.

Canton police plan to request permanent local funding for the clinician position beginning in fiscal 2028.

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