Orange County is immediately taking over the two Be Well OC campuses in Orange and Irvine, severing ties with the nonprofit Mind OC in an agreement that settles a tumultuous legal battle.
The fighting saw charges and countercharges of profiteering, fraud and breach of contract that quickly upended what began as a much-touted partnership to develop behavioral health facilities in the county.
County officials said the legal settlement clears the way for the much-awaited opening of the $110 million, 154-bed campus in Irvine.
“We finally secured the keys and can open the Irvine campus so children and families facing a behavioral health crisis get the care they need closer to home,” said Supervisor Katrina Foley. “Now we can focus on connecting children, adolescents, families and adults with crisis care, treatment, recovery services, and ongoing support across Orange County.”
Services at the existing Orange campus will continue without interruption, according to the county.
Under the mutual agreement, Mind OC will no longer hold a ground lease or other interest in the campuses. The Orange County Health Care Agency will assume direct oversight of both facilities and will rename them. Mind OC will retain the “Be Well OC” brand.
Also under the settlement, Mind OC will receive a $2.1 million reimbursement from the county.
“The mission of Be Well OC is to enhance the behavioral health care system for all Orange County residents through transformational public and private partnerships, and we are proud to have built two state-of-the-art campuses for behavioral health services in Orange County,” said Dr. Richard Afable, chairman of the board for Mind OC, in a statement released by the county. “We look forward to continuing our mission and serving Orange County residents.”
The partnership began to unravel with a 2024 county lawsuit that accused Mind OC of overbilling for rent on the Orange campus, charging rates that the county alleged were criminally high, by millions of dollars. The building belonged to Mind OC, but was situated on county land.
Mind OC officials denied the allegations, saying the rates were standard in the industry and necessary for the campus’ upkeep. They also accused the county of trying to take over MInd OC’s assets.
Over the years, the county erased Mind OC’s participation in providing mental health services at the Orange site, reducing the charity to a glorified groundskeeper.
The organization was formed as a nonprofit in 2019 in response to the county’s effort to create a chain of mental health facilities under the Be Well OC brand. The Orange campus opened in 2021 amid much fanfare.
But it wasn’t long before the fighting began. And ultimately, the county accused Mind OC of fraud and breaking federal health privacy laws. The county alleged the charity violated at least 38 terms of its operating agreement on the Orange site and generated a windfall of excess profits by charging the county more than $6.5 million in rent.
Also centerstage in the battle was a claim that Mind OC paid $275,000 in county money to a company run by the wife of the chief of staff for ex-county Supervisor Andrew Do for work that was never done. Do is serving a 60-month federal sentence for accepting bribes to direct more than $10 million in pandemic funds to his associates.
Mind OC repaid the $275,000 to the county, which, however, continued to claim that Do pressured county Health Care Agency officials to give Mind OC a bigger role at the Be Well campus in Orange.
Meanwhile, the Irvine facility — which received more than $100 million in state, federal and local funds — has sat empty for months while the two sides fought.
County officials on Tuesday said preparations are underway for clinical providers and operational teams to begin services at the Irvine campus as “soon as possible.” Among the planned services are crisis stabilization, residential treatment, substance use recovery programs, adolescent services, perinatal services, and other behavioral health programs.
