Nevada County Crisis Unit Reopens in Grass Valley

GRASS VALLEY — Adults experiencing a mental health crisis can again seek round-the-clock walk-in care at Nevada County’s Crisis Stabilization Unit in Grass Valley, which reopened October 1 under a new provider, the nonprofit Pacific Clinics. The unit closed for remodeling, maintenance, and facility upgrades as the county changed crisis-service providers.

Nevada County Behavioral Health announced the reopening and said the unit is adding peer support partners for the first time. Those partners offer adults a connection with someone who has experienced similar challenges.

The voluntary, four-bed program serves people ages 18 and older. It offers crisis and nursing assessments, help developing coping strategies and safety plans, and referrals to community resources. The county’s contract with Pacific Clinics describes stays of up to 23 hours per visit and access regardless of insurance status. People are screened before admission.

Walk-in assessments are available 24 hours a day, seven days a week, at 145 Glasson Way, next to the Sierra Nevada Memorial Hospital emergency department entrance. People can also reach the unit at 530-997-1055 or receive a referral through the hospital’s emergency department.

Pacific Clinics is also scheduled to begin providing 24-hour mobile crisis services in Nevada County on November 1, the county announcement says. Mobile teams respond where a person is experiencing a crisis, assess the situation, help de-escalate it, and connect the person with further care. The county’s 24-hour crisis line, 530-265-5811, provides telephone support for adults and children and handles mobile-service triage.

The contract lays out different staffing arrangements for the county’s western communities and the Tahoe Truckee area. In western Nevada County, it calls for a two-person mobile team available around the clock. One member may participate remotely when that is safe and necessary for a timely response.

In Tahoe Truckee, the contract requires a crisis worker available at least 40 hours per week to respond at Tahoe Forest Hospital or in the community, with on-call support outside scheduled hours. It specifies in-person evaluations at the hospital within two hours of a request during on-call periods from 5 PM to midnight on weekdays and 8 AM to midnight on weekends. Other on-call support may involve an in-person response or remote assessment.

The contract also requires follow-up within three days for people served by mobile crisis teams, regardless of insurance status.

The reopening follows the county’s selection of Pacific Clinics through a competitive bidding process in late 2025. An August 11 staff report says the nonprofit received the highest scores across the crisis-service categories. The contract sets a maximum payment of $6,715,745 for services during the fiscal year ending June 30, 2027, covering crisis intervention, mobile response, and operation of the stabilization unit.

The county’s crisis-care page also lists in-person crisis assessments at Sierra Nevada Memorial Hospital and Tahoe Forest Hospital in Truckee. It directs people in danger or facing an emergency to call 911.