BEHAVIORAL HEALTH SUPPORT WHERE PEOPLE ARE
Meeting People With Care, Respect and Real Support
COCAS Mobile Behavioral Health Outreach connects people experiencing homelessness and housing instability with behavioral-health support, crisis resources, peer services, case management and pathways to housing, treatment and community care.
Outreach may be provided by qualified COCAS or ME Living staff, licensed professionals, peer-support workers or verified community partners depending on the participant's location and needs.
If you or someone else is in immediate danger or has a medical emergency, contact local emergency services. For emotional distress or a behavioral-health crisis in the United States, call or text 988.
About the Program
Behavioral-health support, closer to people
COCAS Mobile Behavioral Health Outreach helps bring behavioral-health engagement, screenings, counseling, crisis support, peer services, care coordination and resource navigation closer to people experiencing homelessness or serious housing instability.
Services may be delivered at shelters, transitional-housing programs, approved encampment outreach locations, community centers, food distributions, day centers, supportive-housing sites, through scheduled mobile outreach, through approved telehealth, at partner locations, or through referral to another qualified provider.
Availability
Service availability varies by location, staffing, participant need, provider authorization and funding. Submitting a request does not guarantee immediate outreach, therapy, housing or crisis-team dispatch.
COCAS provides outreach, screening, supportive services, care coordination and referrals. Licensed clinical care is available only through appropriately qualified and authorized providers. Crisis response, service availability, insurance coverage, housing and treatment placement must be separately confirmed.
Who the Program Supports
Reaching people where they are
Anyone experiencing homelessness or housing instability may submit a request. Select a category to begin.
People Living Unsheltered
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Shelter Residents
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People Living in Vehicles
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People Living in Hotels or Motels
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People Couch Surfing
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People in Transitional Housing
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People Facing Eviction
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Domestic-Violence Survivors
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Veterans
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Young Adults
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Families With Children
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Pregnant and Postpartum Participants
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Older Adults
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People With Disabilities
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People Returning From Incarceration
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People Recovering From Substance Use
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People Recently Discharged From Hospitals
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People With Serious Mental-Health Needs
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People Seeking Preventive Emotional Support
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Service Categories
How we can help
COCAS coordinates outreach, screening, support, care coordination and referrals. Availability varies by location, staffing and verified provider authorization.
Outreach and Engagement
Relationship-building, needs identification, shelter and encampment outreach, and coordinated engagement with partner agencies. Outreach is not automatically a clinical therapy encounter.
Behavioral-Health Screening
Preliminary screens for depression, anxiety, trauma, suicide risk, substance-use and housing needs. A screening does not replace a full clinical evaluation or create a diagnosis.
Individual Counseling
Supportive, trauma-informed counseling, grief and adjustment support, and coping-skills development when authorized by a qualified professional operating within scope.
Crisis Screening and Stabilization
Immediate safety screening, de-escalation, safety planning, connection to 988 and referral to mobile crisis or emergency services. Not every outreach worker is a mobile-crisis clinician.
Substance-Use Support
Substance-use screening, recovery planning, harm-reduction education where authorized, peer-recovery support and treatment referrals. Ordinary outreach staff are not prescribers or detox providers.
Peer Support
Engagement, recovery encouragement, shared-experience support, navigation and wellness planning. Peer support is not psychotherapy and peer staff are not licensed clinicians.
Case Management
Needs assessment, service planning, benefits and Medicaid navigation, identification replacement, transportation coordination and care-team coordination. Case management is not therapy.
Housing Navigation
Shelter search, coordinated-entry navigation, transitional and supportive-housing referrals, document gathering and housing-retention support. A request does not guarantee a housing placement or voucher.
Healthcare Coordination
Primary-care and community-clinic referrals, medication appointment coordination, hospital follow-up, pharmacy and health-insurance navigation. Outreach staff do not diagnose or treat medical conditions.
Mobile Group Support
Coping-skills, grief, recovery, stress-management and life-skills groups. Confidential therapy groups are not conducted where privacy cannot reasonably be protected.
Family Support and Reconnection
Family-contact planning, communication coaching and reunification-resource referral with participant permission. No family contact or reunification that may expose a participant to abuse.
Reentry Behavioral-Health Support
Release planning, behavioral-health screening, medication-continuity coordination, probation coordination and benefits navigation. Records are not shared with corrections without authorization.
Telebehavioral Health
Video, audio-only and secure-messaging appointments when participant location, provider authorization, privacy and emergency planning are verified. Not through ordinary social-media messaging.
Wellness and Skills Support
Stress-management, sleep-hygiene, routine, mindfulness, self-care and goal-setting education. General wellness education is not medical treatment.
Direct, partner and referral services
Every service has a delivery status — from COCAS or ME Living direct clinical service, to contracted providers, community partners, peer-support partners, housing partners and referral-only resources. Only verified and published capabilities appear publicly. COCAS never infers nationwide clinical availability from a single state's license or contract.
How It Works
From request to follow-up
A coordinated, trauma-informed path that respects each participant's pace and safety.
Submit an Outreach Request or Referral
Complete the secure request or referral with the person's needs, location and safe-contact details.
Staff Review Urgency and Safety
A coordinator reviews urgency, safety flags and any crisis indicators using safe-contact rules.
Confirm Location and Service Availability
We confirm the service area, partner access, staffing and whether a safe meeting is possible.
Assign an Appropriate Outreach or Clinical Path
We assign an outreach worker, peer, case manager or licensed clinician based on need and verified credentials.
Provide Engagement, Assessment, Care or Referral
The team provides engagement, screening, counseling when authorized, crisis referral or a community referral.
Complete Follow-Up and Ongoing Coordination
We schedule follow-up, coordinate care and record outcomes with privacy protections.
Possible outcomes
Take the Next Step
Request or refer for outreach support
FAQ
Frequently asked questions
What is mobile behavioral-health outreach?+
It brings outreach, engagement, screenings, support and referrals closer to people who face barriers reaching traditional offices.
Do I need stable housing to receive help?+
No. The program is designed to reach people who are unsheltered, in shelters, living in vehicles, hotels or other unstable arrangements.
Does submitting the form dispatch a crisis team?+
No. Staff must review the request. Immediate danger or a medical emergency requires emergency services.
Can I request support for another person?+
Yes. Provide the information you know, your relationship and any available consent or safe-contact details.
Will the person be forced to participate?+
Routine outreach and therapy generally require voluntary participation, subject to applicable emergency and legal requirements.
Can COCAS meet someone at an encampment or shelter?+
A location may be reviewed for outreach depending on safety, service area, staffing, partner access and participant consent.
Is every outreach worker a therapist?+
No. Teams may include outreach workers, peers, case managers, clinicians and other authorized professionals with different roles.
Can the program provide substance-use treatment?+
The program may provide authorized support or connect participants with appropriate treatment providers. Not every outreach worker is a treatment provider.
Is information confidential?+
COCAS uses privacy and security controls, but specific confidentiality rules depend on the service, provider and applicable law.
Can COCAS help with housing?+
Staff may provide housing navigation and referrals, but a housing placement or voucher is not guaranteed.
Can services be provided through telehealth?+
Telehealth may be available when participant location, provider authorization, privacy, technology and emergency planning requirements are satisfied.
What happens when staff cannot locate someone?+
Staff records contact attempts and may coordinate another safe attempt with the requester or an authorized partner.
Can a person receive services without insurance?+
Insurance should not be required for basic outreach or resource information. Availability of clinical services and funding must be reviewed separately.
Will police be contacted?+
Police or emergency responders are not automatically contacted for every request. Emergency and safety actions depend on the circumstances, applicable law and professional judgment.