Testimony: Roundtable on Supporting Humane and Trauma-Informed Responses to Behavioral Health Crises Resolution

Children’s Law Center Behavioral Health Policy Analyst Chris Gamble testified before the Committee on Health and the Committee on the Judiciary and Public Safety in support of PR26-0108 – Sense of the Council on Supporting Humane and Trauma-Informed Responses to Behavioral Health Crises Resolution of 2025.

Children’s Law Center represents over half the kids in DC’s foster care system. These youth are at risk of experiencing behavioral health crises due to the trauma of abuse, neglect, and home removal. Ineffective crisis response at times affects foster parents’ willingness to be a placement for a youth, thus destabilizing the youth’s living situation and behavioral health. We support the Council’s resolution and agree that DC needs a more coordinated and effective crisis response system, particularly in terms of meeting the needs of children with appropriately trained behavioral health professionals.