Mental health resources in Palo Alto

Anyone can go through a hard time. Asking for help is a sign of strength. Palo Alto residents have access to free crisis lines that answer around the clock, county services for people with Medi-Cal, Medicare or no insurance and programs run by the city and the school district. The region's large health systems, Stanford Health Care and Sutter Health's Palo Alto Medical Foundation, offer outpatient mental health care through referrals and insurance.

This page lists official resources only, as each organization describes them on its own website in October 2026. It does not offer advice or diagnosis. Phone numbers and programs can change, so the links below go to the source pages. If you are worried about someone else, the same lines can help you figure out what to do next.

988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline

The 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline is the national three-digit number for mental health, substance use and suicide crises. You can call or text 988, or chat through the lifeline's website. It is free, confidential and open 24 hours a day, seven days a week. You do not need to be suicidal to call. People also use it when they are struggling, worried about someone or not sure where else to turn.

In Santa Clara County, the county's crisis and suicide prevention lifeline page explains how local calls are answered. Calls and texts from phones with a 408, 650 or 669 area code reach counselors in the county. Phones with other area codes reach counselors linked to that area code. To reach a Santa Clara County 988 counselor from any phone, call 800-704-0900 and press 1. The county says texting is available in English and Spanish and that it also has community mobile response teams for in-person help.

Veterans, service members and their families can dial 988 and press 1 to reach the Veterans Crisis Line.

Santa Clara County Behavioral Health Services

Palo Alto is in Santa Clara County. The county's Behavioral Health Services Department is the main public provider of mental health and substance use treatment. Its entry point is the Behavioral Health Services Call Center.

• How to call. The county's Talk to someone now page says to call 988 from a local phone number or (800) 704-0900 from a number outside the county.
• Hours. 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
• Languages. The county says translation is available in all languages spoken in the County of Santa Clara.
• What it does. Mental health and substance use screenings, assessment appointments, referrals, patient navigation and information about programs.
• Who it serves. Referrals are available to all ages. The county says its behavioral health services are available to residents with Medi-Cal, Medicare or no insurance.

If you have private insurance, your plan's behavioral health line can tell you which providers are covered.

City of Palo Alto resources

The City of Palo Alto keeps a Community Health and Wellbeing page that gathers crisis lines, youth programs, grief support and services for older adults. Among the local resources it lists:

• Palo Alto Police, 911 for emergencies and (650) 329-2413 for non-emergencies, with 24-hour dispatch.
• allcove Palo Alto, 2741 Middlefield Road, Suite 102, for non-urgent mental health support for young people ages 12 to 25. The city notes it also runs a grief support group.
• Project Safety Net, a Palo Alto-based group that works on youth suicide prevention and mental wellness in the community.
• NAMI Santa Clara County, (408) 453-0400, for support and education about mental illness for individuals and families.
• Avenidas, (650) 289-5400, listed for senior wellness support, along with 2-1-1 Bay Area for help finding services.
• Mental Health First Aid training, scheduled for November 14, 2026, at the Downtown Library.

The page also lists teen centers, the National Domestic Violence Hotline, the Disaster Distress Helpline and support groups for substance use. Older adults and caregivers will find more in our resources for older adults guide. The Palo Alto City Library keeps a list of hotlines and helplines for teens that the city links from the same page.

Palo Alto Unified School District

The school district runs a Mental Health and Wellness section with school counseling, wellness centers and a free virtual service for students.

Uwill: crisis line and teletherapy

PAUSD partners with Uwill to offer free, confidential mental health support to all district students. According to the district's Uwill page:

• Crisis line. Students, parents and staff can call 833-455-0331 at any hour, any day of the year, to reach a licensed clinician.
• Teletherapy. Students can choose a licensed therapist by language or focus and meet by video, phone or messaging, including evenings, weekends and school breaks.
• Access. Students log in through ClassLink and open the Uwill app.
• Consent. Students under 12 need a parent or guardian's consent and a parent joins the first session. Students 12 and older can schedule on their own.

High school wellness centers

Both comprehensive high schools have a wellness center staffed by a mental health and wellness coordinator. The district's wellness centers page places the Palo Alto High School center on the second floor of the Tower building and the Gunn High School center on the second floor of the P building. Partner agencies, including Counseling and Support Services for Youth, Asian Americans for Community Involvement and Stanford Psychiatry, bring counselors to campus each week. The district says these services are free and confidential. Students can walk in, refer themselves or be referred by a school counselor or psychologist.

Middle school families can contact their school's counseling staff. The district's main line is (650) 329-3700.

Stanford Health Care

Stanford Health Care runs outpatient psychiatric and behavioral health care for adults. Its Outpatient Psychiatry Clinic page describes care for a wide range of conditions, with specialized programs for older adults, women and people with a coexisting medical condition.

• Phone: 650-498-9111. New patients choose option 2.
• Referrals: New patients generally need a referral from a Stanford primary care doctor or specialist. Stanford says some programs accept self-referrals from California residents by phone.
• Not for urgent needs: the clinic says it cannot provide same-day services or urgent help to walk-in patients and points people in crisis to 911, the nearest emergency department or 988.
• Insurance: Stanford lists the plans it accepts on its billing page and says it does not provide mental health care to patients using Kaiser Permanente insurance.

Stanford students have their own campus services, which the clinic page links separately.

Sutter Health and the Palo Alto Medical Foundation

Sutter Health, which runs the Palo Alto Medical Foundation, offers outpatient behavioral health care including individual therapy, group and family counseling, psychiatric evaluation and medication management. Its behavioral health page lists a referral line at 888-834-1788, staffed weekdays from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sutter's online directory lists psychiatrists and psychotherapists who practice in Palo Alto. If you already see a PAMF primary care doctor, that doctor can also refer you within Sutter.

Veterans

The VA Palo Alto Health Care System's main campus at 3801 Miranda Avenue offers mental health and PTSD treatment and addiction treatment for veterans enrolled in VA health care. Its emergency department is open 24 hours a day. VA Health Connect at 833-983-0487 is a 24-hour line for enrolled veterans. The Veterans Crisis Line is 988, then press 1.

Finding care through insurance

For ongoing therapy or psychiatry, insurance usually determines where you go first. Check your plan's behavioral health network with your insurer, since mental health benefits are sometimes managed by a separate company. Ask any provider whether it is in network before your first appointment. Residents with Medi-Cal, Medicare or no insurance can start with the county call center described above. Our healthcare guide explains how Stanford and Sutter differ. Our urgent care guide lists emergency departments.

Frequently asked questions