ADVERTISEMENT
Better Access to Mental Health Services Linked With Lower Community Incarceration Rates
There are nearly 10 times as many individuals with serious mental illness in prisons and jails than in state psychiatric hospitals, according to a study by researchers at the Schar School of Policy and Government at George Mason University.
The study also found that access to affordable healthcare and behavioral health treatment can impact how a jail is used and reduce the size of a jail’s population. Findings are based on an analysis of the size of jail populations in 3100 US counties to explore factors contributing to the overuse of incarceration in jails as communities face increasing mental health challenges among constituents.
A higher per capita jail population was associated with the following factors:
- Fewer per capita psychiatrists
- Lower percent of substance use disorder treatment paid for by Medicaid
- Higher per capita healthcare costs
- Higher number of physically unhealthy days per month
- Lower high school graduation rate
- Smaller county size
- Police officers per capita
Overall, counties with smaller populations, larger percentages of individuals who did not graduate high school, more health issues, and fewer community treatment services were found more likely to have higher per capital jail populations.
The researchers concluded that increasing access to behavioral health services and improving the affordability of drug treatment may help lower incarceration rates.
“This study is important because it illustrates the interconnection between mental health services in the community and the size of the jail population—that is, if counties invest in expanding local health services, then they can reduce how they use their local jail,” principal investigator Faye S. Taxman, founding director of the Center for Advancing Correctional Excellence at George Mason University, said in a news release.
References
