OAKLAND, Calif. (KRON) – The City of Oakland’s non-police response program, MACRO, has helped thousands of Oakland residents, but there are questions regarding the number of 911 dispatch calls for MACRO left unanswered. 

MACRO, which stands for Mobile Assistant Community Responders of Oakland, is approaching its one-year anniversary in April. Although the city’s community response program for nonviolent, non-emergency 911 calls is still a work in progress, MACRO spokesperson Michael Hunt says, “the upside has been huge.”

Hunt says in the early stages of the pilot program, MACRO made nearly 10,000 contacts with people.