New Tucson program seeks to safely get lost vulnerable adults back home

The Pima County Sheriff’s Department is set to launch a new program to address cases of vulnerable adults who become lost.

The “Lost Assistance Program” is headed by the Mental Health Support Team of the Pima County Sheriff’s Department, according to a department news release Tuesday.

In the program, wristbands will be distributed to “members of the population who may not have the ability to effectively communicate,” officials said. That could include people with Alzheimer’s, dementia, autism, developmental delays or other illnesses, officials said.

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The wristbands will have “Pima County Sheriff’s Department” printed on them, along with a unique identification number that local law enforcement agencies can use to identify the individual. It will include their name, address, emergency contact information and other identifiers to “return the lost person to their home and loved ones,” the release said.

The first opportunity to sign up for the new program will be Tuesday, Nov. 7, at the KGVY Radio 22nd annual Senior and Boomer Info Fair at the Desert Hills Lutheran Church, 2150 S. Camino Del Sol in Green Valley, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Those who sign up for wristbands can expect them to be available in approximately two weeks, the department said.