20210127-42716-16

Priority Area 1: Establish a Quality Improvement Unit within the Wyoming Department of Corrections.
Background: Wyoming’s Justice Reinvestment legislation, HEA 0062, requires a QI Unit to be created within the Department of Corrections to monitor the administration and use of substance use disorder assessments. This legislation supports hiring and training staff for the QI Unit, the development of policies and procedures specifically related to the assessment process, and training for personnel in both the WDOC and WDH who will be working within the newly developed QI policies.

Update: In November, CSG Justice Center staff continued their work with WDOC and WDH working groups to establish the policy and procedures that will lay the groundwork for the QI Unit, established under HEA 0062. This included the completion of five stakeholder calls with staff from WDOC, WDH, and WAMHSAC to gauge their opinions on the goals of the QI Unit, the barriers the unit may encounter during implementation, barriers to sustainability of the unit, and how staff viewed the collaborative efforts to establish the unit. Additionally, CSG Justice Center staff worked with staff from the Alliance for Community and Justice Innovation (ACJI) to reach out to stakeholders to collect feedback on a competency survey for the QI Unit hire.
Priority Area 2: Develop standardized, evidence-based treatment guidelines and practices for substance use treatment and programming for people in the criminal justice system.
Background: During the earlier part of Phase II, CSG Justice Center staff completed an assessment of community providers’ treatment practices throughout the state. The assessment found that there were inconsistent practices statewide that could contribute to varying outcomes and costs for clients. To improve consistency, HEA 0062 requires a set of standards to be developed for programs delivering substance use disorder and behavioral health services.

Update: The biweekly meetings with the WDOC, WDH, Wyoming Association of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Centers (WAMHSAC), and CSG Justice Center staff continue. Throughout November, CSG Justice Center staff continued to receive updates on the progress of the working group, composed of WDOC and WDH staff, that is addressing issues impacting the referral process for people who are in need of additional substance use disorder or mental health treatment from community providers upon their release from a correctional facility. This new procedure is now with the Wyoming Assistant Attorney General for review. If approved, the new referral process will improve the continuity of care for people returning to the community who are in need of continued behavioral health care.
Priority Area 3: Expand the sharing and acceptance of substance use disorder, mental health, and co-occurring assessment results between providers and WDOC.
Background: The assessment process completed by CSG Justice Center staff in the initial part of Phase II found that there was a hesitancy, or outright refusal, among some community providers to accept substance use assessments completed by other entities. The new behavioral health legislation, HEA 0062, addresses this with the requirement to improve the portability and acceptance of assessments across the state.

Update: The working group of WDOC, WDH, and providers that have been focusing on release of information has created a new policy guiding the practice of communication between institutional and community providers as well as an MOU that will allow information sharing between providers within the corrections facilities, community providers, and WDOC. Further, the state has approved the purchase order, funded through the subaward, to allow behavioral health providers contracted with the state to use an automated ASI system. This will facilitate greater information sharing and allow the QI Unit to engage with data in a more efficient and systematic way.

Priority Area 4: Create a separate contract or separate provisions in the existing contract between WDH and the regional behavioral health providers to ensure consistency and improve outcomes for people in the criminal justice system.
Background: Current contract standards with community providers are compliance based. With the requirements of HEA 0062, there will need to be adjustments to the contracting procedure to allow for greater monitoring and oversight by the QI Unit and to ensure consistency among practices within community providers.

Update: Wyoming’s constitution requires the governor to submit a balanced budget to the legislature. Due to a number of factors, the state is facing a major deficit. All contract negotiations for the WDH have been suspended until there is a final vote on the third-tier budget reductions)

Priority Area 5: Develop data tracking measures.
Background: As part of Justice Reinvestment implementation, states are required to identify and submit regular data tracking metrics to the CSG Justice Center to capture the progress of both the original 4 pieces of legislation, HEA 53, SEA 19, SEA 20, and HB 45, as well as the newest piece of legislation, HEA 0062.

Update: CSG Justice Center staff continue to receive monthly data submissions from WDOC. A new data sharing agreement has been developed that will allow the state to share behavioral health data not previously collected with CSG Justice Center staff. The data sharing agreement has been signed by all parties.

Priority Area 6: Continue to assist the state with monitoring progress, collecting data, tracking outcomes, and addressing challenges with implementation of the priorities associated with HEA 53, SEA 19, SEA 20, and HEA 45.
Background: From March 2019 to March 2020, CSG Justice Center staff completed several implementation projects associated with Wyoming’s first four Justice Reinvestment bills (enacted in February 2019). These included the implementation of the PRISM incentives and sanction system, the use of 90-day sanctions, the use of substance use treatment and cognitive behavioral programming in jails and prisons, the use of early discharge from supervision and capping the length of supervision, and the impact of the expansion of victim compensation periods. Active technical assistance on these projects has wound down, but CSG Justice Center staff continue to monitor their progress and outcomes.

Update: CSG Justice Center staff continue to monitor monthly data submissions to track the progress being made under the initial Justice Reinvestment legislation. Key metrics are reported to the CSG Justice Center with a significant lag time (approximately five months), so CSG Justice Center staff are awaiting more submissions to understand more recent trends in the state. The third tier of budget reductions that were submitted to the legislature in late November will reduce the funding to HEA 53 for the incentives and sanctions structure that the CSG Justice Center provided TA assistance on and continues to monitor.

Priority Area 7: Engage and educate Wyoming stakeholders on Justice Reinvestment legislation to promote oversight and sustainability.
Background: The Joint Judiciary Committee approved legislation to monitor the implementation of Justice Reinvestment legislation for the first part of Phase II (HEA 53, SEA 19, SEA 20, and HB 45). Additionally, the Joint Labor, Health, and Social Services Committee will receive annual updates on the newly passed behavioral health legislation through 2023.

Update: In November, much of the state continued to be in a holding pattern as people awaited a determination from the governor’s office on the third round of state budget cuts. There has been some concern regarding the impact the budget cuts will have on the WDH and providers throughout the state.