Press Releases
County of Sonoma awarded $4.6 million in state funding to assist with homeless encampments
California Gov. Gavin Newsom announced this week that the County of Sonoma will receive $4.6 million to help individuals experiencing homelessness in encampments by moving them off the streets and into safe and stable housing. The county is one of 23 entities targeted to receive the special state funds. Read full story
Sonoma County Supervisors award $3 million for homelessness solutions
The Sonoma County Board of Supervisors today approved $3 million in additional funds for housing-focused homelessness intervention projects as part of the county’s overall goal of reducing the homeless population by 10 percent every year. Read full story
Sonoma County Department of Health Services recommends awarding ambulance contract to Sonoma County Fire District
The Sonoma County Department of Health Services today announced it is recommending that the Board of Supervisors award a contract to the Sonoma County Fire District for advanced life support ground ambulance services for Exclusive Operating Area No. 1, which includes Santa Rosa, Rohnert Park and much of central Sonoma County. Read full story
Sonoma County saw 22 percent decrease in homelessness, annual Point-in-Time count shows
Sonoma County saw an overall 22 percent decrease in the area’s homeless population last year including a 24 percent decline in those identified as being chronically homeless, according to preliminary results of the 2023 Sonoma County Point-in-Time count in January. Read full story
Sonoma County Board of Supervisors, Department of Health Services host special mental health forum
With Sonoma County experiencing a rise in substance use disorders, homelessness and a shortage of services to address an unprecedented mental health crisis, the Sonoma County Board of Supervisors and Department of Health Services on Tuesday convened a first-of-its-kind summit of behavioral health professionals from across the county for a listening session on the mental health care needs of the community. Read full story
Sonoma County Board of Supervisors, Department of Health Services to host special mental health forum May 2
The Sonoma County Board of Supervisors and Department of Health Services are hosting a day-long community forum on Tuesday, May 2 concerning the state of mental health in the county. The forum, to be held at the Finley Center in Santa Rosa, will include panels of county behavioral health officials and mental health service providers discussing key challenges and issues facing the community. Read full story
Sonoma County supervisors approve $250,500 in mental health funding for students; additional funding set to be approved later
The Sonoma County Board of Supervisors today approved $250,500 to provide behavioral health services in schools in partnership with the Sonoma County Office of Education. The funding is from Measure O, the quarter-cent sales tax measure voters approved in 2020 to fund mental health and homelessness services. Read full story
Sonoma County health officer provides final COVID community update
Sonoma County Health Officer Dr. Sundari Mase today provided her final COVID-19 community update before stepping down at the end of this week after three years in her post. Her recorded message includes the latest numbers on COVID cases and vaccinations in Sonoma County and includes lessons learned during the past three years of the pandemic. Read full story
Dr. Kismet Baldwin-Santana to be appointed Sonoma County’s interim Health Officer
Dr. Kismet Baldwin-Santana, an experienced public health official who helped lead Sonoma County’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic, has been named interim health officer by the director of the Department of Health Services. A pediatrics specialist with a master’s degree in public health, Dr. Baldwin-Santana has served as Sonoma County’s deputy public health officer since July 2020. Read full story
Sonoma County to lift public health emergency at the end of February
Sonoma County Health Officer Dr. Sundari Mase announced today that she will lift at the end of the month the local public health emergency that has been in place since March 2, 2020 to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic. The local emergency will expire on Feb. 28, the same day that Gov. Gavin Newsom has said the state public health emergency will expire. Read full story