During COVID-19 it has been challenging to connect people with appropriate medical care, especially incarcerated and recently released individuals. The rise in telehealth services can help address this problem and can be a cost-efficient and effective way to provide care.
The Bureau of Justice Assistance’s (BJA) Comprehensive Opioid, Stimulant, and Substance Abuse Program (COSSAP) has developed several resources to help jails implement telehealth services, many of which can be found on their website. These include the briefing sheet “Using Telehealth for Behavioral Health in the Criminal Justice System” and the webinar slides “Implementing Telehealth in Jails.”
The Council of State Governments Justice Center, supported by BJA, hosted the following webinar with its Stepping Up Initiative partners: “Connecting People Who Have Serious Mental Illnesses to Care—Telehealth and Other Strategies.” This webinar focused on connecting people who have been discharged from jail with care and shared specific examples from counties.
Learn more about Stepping Up: A National Initiative to Reduce the Number of People with Mental Illnesses in Jails.
Learn more about BJA’s COSSAP.