ASHEVILLE, NC – This month marks three years since crews broke ground on the Alamance Behavioral Health Center, a pivotal milestone in expanding access to behavioral health crisis services in Alamance County and the region. The center, which opened in August 2024, serves as a centralized location for people experiencing mental health or substance use challenges, whether they are in crisis or seeking support before one occurs.
The genesis of the center began more than a decade ago, as Alamance County commissioners, law enforcement, and community leaders explored ways to better support individuals facing a mental health or substance use crisis. The working name for the facility was a “diversion” center, meant to divert people from the emergency room or jail to a place where they could get immediate, appropriate, and individualized treatment.
Data from its opening to date show that diversion is successful, with 87% of those served by the facility’s urgent care unit diverted from an emergency department. For the Facility-Based Crisis Unit, open since May 2025, the figure rises to 94%.
“Behavioral health services are a great community investment and an integral part of public safety,” said Sen. Amy Galey, who represents Alamance County in the N.C. Senate and was chair of the Alamance County Board of Commissioners from 2017-2020. “The benefits extend not only to the client served, but also to law enforcement officers and members of the public who directly benefit from de-escalation of potentially chaotic events. I am proud of Alamance County’s leadership in addressing these issues and creating this opportunity to address the mental health needs of these vulnerable people.”
In 2022, Vaya Health stepped in as Alamance County’s local management entity and pledged to see the project through. In keeping with that commitment, Vaya successfully submitted a grant application to the NC Division of Mental Health, Developmental Disabilities, and Substance Use Services in 2023 for crisis dollars allocated by the NC General Assembly, securing critical funding necessary to finish construction and launch the facility. Supported by this allocation, as well as funding from Alamance County and Vaya, the Alamance Behavioral Health Urgent Care (BHUC) now operates 24/7 under the management of RHA Health Services.
The model reflects a commitment to building a more responsive crisis system through an integrated campus that offers core services, including the BHUC, walk-in assessments, prescriptions, and the Peer Living Room. This model strengthens service coordination and expands capacity, helping reach more residents across the region.
“It took creative planning and lots of time and passion from Alamance County, law enforcement, and others to get to where we are today,” said Tracy Hayes, Area Director and CEO of Vaya Health. “The progress we have made in Alamance County demonstrates why having a community-led organization such as Vaya is so important. We’re proud to see this early success and will continue working to ensure that people in the community can access help when they need it most.”
In Alamance and surrounding counties, the center has taken pressure off emergency departments at Alamance Regional Medical Center and Cone Health Alamance Regional. In the twelve months beginning August 2024, the Alamance Behavioral Health Center had:
- 1,038 Behavioral Health Urgent Care visits, giving individuals access to assessments, therapy, medication management, and other services for every level of need.
- 67 admissions to the Facility-Based Crisis unit since opening the doors in May 2025. An FBC provides short-term stays — typically three to six days — for adults who need to detox, stabilize, and transition to the appropriate level of care, whether outpatient or residential.
- 11,658 prescriptions filled on site, which includes being filled after provider visits, eliminating the need for extra trips. The pharmacy stocks a wide range of medications, not just those for behavioral health.
- 714 Peer Living Room visits, where participants joined support groups, engaged in activities, or took time for themselves. Peer support specialists with lived experience with mental health and/or substance use helped individuals connect to resources to help manage future crises.
These figures highlight how the Alamance community and Vaya Health’s collaborative model deliver essential behavioral health services for Alamance and the surrounding counties. Because individuals often use multiple services over time, totals reflect service interactions rather than unique patients — underscoring the center’s role as a trusted community hub.
Since the November 2022 groundbreaking in Burlington, Vaya has worked with community partners and utilized state funding to launch or expand behavioral health crisis facilities in five other North Carolina counties. Additionally, a walk-in center is available in all 32 counties that Vaya serves. To learn more about walk-in centers, visit www.vayahealth.com/get-help/walk-crisis-centers.
About Vaya Health
Vaya Health is a specialty managed care organization and local government agency that oversees publicly funded health care services across a 32-county region of North Carolina for people with significant behavioral health needs, intellectual/developmental disabilities, and traumatic brain injuries. Vaya manages Medicaid, federal, state, and local funding to meet member and community needs while advancing whole-person health. Together with members, contracted providers, and local partners, we’re moving forward to a healthier North Carolina. Vaya Health can be found online at vayahealth.com, on Facebook at facebook.com/VayaHealth/, on X (formerly known as Twitter) @VayaHealth, on Instagram at instagram.com/vaya.health, and on LinkedIn at linkedin.com/company/vaya-health.
