New South Wales police and the state's health department are expected to sign a memorandum of understanding setting out how mental health incident callouts will be managed. NSW Police Minister Yasmin Catley announced the pending agreement at a Police Association of NSW conference, where she appeared alongside Premier Chris Minns and Police Commissioner Mal Lanyon.

"There is an MoU that is very close to being signed," Catley said. "The commissioner and I are working very closely with NSW Health to get that work done," she added.

The government is considering an approach modeled on the United Kingdom's "right person, right care" framework for mental health callouts, which deploys health workers rather than police officers when no crime has been committed and there is no risk to life.

An internal review by NSW police released in September 2024 recommended that the state follow the UK approach. The review stated that police often served as "an escalating factor" at mental health incidents and recommended that experts be deployed instead.

In June 2024, a parliamentary inquiry into the state's mental health system urged police to improve mandatory mental health training for officers and to explore becoming second responders. The inquiry suggested that health workers be the first people called to mental health incidents.

Clare Nowland, Steve Pampalian, Jesse Deacon and Krista Kach all died in 2023 while under mental health distress. Minns indicated further announcements on mental health callouts and prisoner transport could come soon.

Police Association of NSW President Kevin Morton called for broader changes to the system. "We need mental health reforms that stop police becoming the default response for every crisis," Morton said.

NSW Opposition Leader Kellie Sloane said the government's response had been delayed. "It was beyond time that we had a concrete response from the government on this," she said. "Officers are plugging too many gaps in a mental health system that is in crisis, and that is not your job," Sloane added.

A fourth annual class will be run at the police academy in Goulburn to increase police recruitment by 30% in a bid to fill staff vacancies.