LEXINGTON, Ky. — Mayor Linda Gorton announced that Lexington has received a $462,523 Kentucky Rural Health Transformation Grant to support and expand the city's Community Paramedicine program, with a new focus on people experiencing homelessness or unstable housing, according to a Lexington-Fayette Urban County Government news release.

The grant comes through the Rural Health Transformation Crisis to Care Program. Gorton said she was excited about the expansion and pointed to the program's existing work.

“I am so excited about our ability to grow our Community Paramedicine program,” Gorton said. “Great work has already been done by this program, and expanding its services and staff will only help better serve people in our high-risk and high-need populations, with an added focus on those who are experiencing homelessness.”

The funding will allow the program to add two civilian positions and a firefighter. It will also pay for additional training, equipment, technology, clinical supplies, transportation assistance and other infrastructure needs, according to the release.

Lexington's Community Paramedicine program was established in 2018 to support individuals struggling with substance use, behavioral health challenges or chronic involvement with public systems. The program includes three specialized teams: the Quick Response Team, the Mobile Integrated Health Team and the Crisis Response Team.

The city says the program helps connect people with support services while reducing the need for emergency calls and visits. According to the release, year-to-date E-911 calls have decreased more than 60%, and emergency department visits have decreased nearly 58%, for patients in the program. The release does not describe how those figures were calculated or over what time period they were measured.

The announcement did not specify when the new positions will be filled or when the expanded services will begin.