Analysis Area 1: Facilitate a cross-system data match between DHHS and county jails to identify the overlapping population of people who have behavioral health challenges who move through local criminal justice systems and identify high utilizers of both systems. CSG Justice Center staff will conduct an in-depth descriptive analysis of the matched Medicaid claims data to provide information on trends in services accessed in the community by people incarcerated in each participating jail. CSG Justice Center staff will also analyze county jail data related to demographic information, booking and release information, screening and assessment information, medications, and programming and treatment information to understand the criminal justice and behavioral health characteristics of locally incarcerated populations.
Update: CSG Justice Center staff executed data use agreements with all nine jails and DHHS to govern the jail/Medicaid data match. CSG Justice Center staff also helped the jails submit their data to DHHS through a series of technical assistance calls and met regularly with DHHS data analysts to answer questions about the analysis plan.
In preparation for a November working group meeting, CSG Justice Center staff also continued analysis of jail administrative data. This included identifying jail population trends and differences in usage of protective custody holds by county. CSG Justice Center staff also began exploring the characteristics of people in the top 1 percent, 5 percent, and 10 percent of all entrances to better understand and begin to quantify the high utilizer population.
Analysis Area 2: Conduct a qualitative assessment on the availability, quality, and data collection practices of jail-based mental health and substance use disorder programming and treatment. CSG Justice Center staff will conduct interviews and focus groups with superintendents, jail staff, and contracted behavioral health providers to provide information on the identification of people with behavioral health needs, services, programming, and options within jails for care coordination to support connections to community-based care. CSG Justice Center staff will review jail policies that guide the practice of identifying, tracking, and referring people with behavioral health conditions to services. This assessment will provide qualitative data on local trends in jail populations, behavioral health needs, and participation in jail-based treatment and services.
Update: CSG Justice Center staff developed a presentation for the Advisory Commission that included findings from the count jail assessments.
Analysis Area 3: Conduct a community-based behavioral health assessment with mental health center staff, substance use disorder treatment and recovery support service providers, housing and homeless service providers, and people with lived experiences. CSG Justice Center staff will identify and geographically map current behavioral health services, crisis response, and alternatives to incarceration programs to provide an overview of availability of services in each county. This assessment will inform stakeholders on the current gaps in behavioral health resources and care coordination with criminal justice systems.
Update: Policy Research Associates (PRA) staff conducted a third and final site visit to meet with community mental health and substance use treatment providers. PRA staff, with support from CSG Justice Center staff, also conducted five statewide virtual focus groups with treatment staff, mobile crisis staff, recovery organization leadership, and peer support staff. This concluded the behavioral health assessment process.
Analysis Area 4: Connect with criminal justice stakeholders (law enforcement, judges, defense attorney, prosecuting attorneys, and community-based corrections) to examine the extent to which law enforcement, courts, and other criminal justice stakeholders have viable, evidence-informed community resources available for people in the criminal justice system who have behavioral health and housing needs, including access to effective crisis and treatment services. CSG Justice Center staff will also identify and geographically map current alternatives to incarceration programs to provide an overview of availability of options for criminal justice agencies in each county. This assessment will inform stakeholders on the current gaps in alternatives to criminal justice system for people with behavioral health conditions.
Update: No update in October.
Research Monthly Status:
CSG Justice Center Research staff prepared TA guidance in advance of each TA call with jail partners, prepared TA follow-up materials after each call, and answered ad-hoc questions for jail partners. Research staff performed data cleaning and analysis on the jail administrative data and contributed to the preliminary findings presentation. Research staff assisted jails on the data submission process to DHHS, which resulted in all data being submitted securely and on time to DHHS. Research staff also coordinated with partners at DHHS regarding the Medicaid analysis. Finally, Research staff presented preliminary findings to NH superintendents.
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