California administers public mental health services through the Department of Health Care Services, with delivery primarily through county behavioral health plans. The resources below cover state-level crisis lines, the state mental health authority, the NAMI state affiliate, and other California-specific points of contact for anxiety, depression, and related conditions.
Crisis lines
- 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline. Call or text 988 anywhere in the United States, including from California.
- CalHOPE Warm Line. Statewide non-crisis emotional support line. Call 1-833-317-4673.
- County crisis lines. Each California county operates a 24/7 mental health crisis line. The DHCS county directory lists each one.
- 211 California. Dial 211 from anywhere in California for non-emergency referrals to mental health, substance use, housing, food, and other community services.
State mental health authority
- California Department of Health Care Services, Behavioral Health. The state agency responsible for Medicaid behavioral health and oversight of county mental health plans.
- California Department of Public Health, Office of Suicide Prevention. State-level suicide prevention coordination and resources.
NAMI California
- NAMI California. State organization of the National Alliance on Mental Illness, with chapter-level education and support across California.
Treatment locators
- SAMHSA Treatment Locator. Searchable by California zip code.
- DHCS Medi-Cal Mental Health Plans Directory. Contact information for each county's mental health plan, the entry point to publicly funded outpatient psychiatry.
University and academic medical centers
The major academic medical centers in California operate outpatient psychiatry clinics and accept some self-referrals.
- UCSF Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences. Outpatient and specialty psychiatry through UCSF Health in San Francisco.
- UCLA Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior. Outpatient psychiatry, specialty clinics, and research programs at UCLA.
- Stanford Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences. Outpatient and specialty psychiatry at Stanford Medicine.
- UC San Diego Department of Psychiatry. Outpatient psychiatry and specialty programs at UC San Diego Health.