7 results for tag: #jail
Reform of Colorado courts’ competency system on chopping block at statehouse, supporters say
April 19, 2024
By: Shelly Bradbury
Criminal prosecutions are paused while defendants go through treatment designed to restore them to competency. If a person is restored, the prosecution can proceed; if a person can’t recover, the criminal charges must be dismissed.
“Right now the highest cost of what is happening around competency is paid in human suffering,” said Lauren Snyder, vice president of government affairs at Mental Health Colorado. “That to me should be a priority for our state in making sure we are not letting people languish in jail who are there just because they have a mental health condition.”
The state has poured ...
Tennessee should not fall for tough-on-crime rhetoric, but rather embrace bail reform
April 18, 2024
By: Vincent Atchity
Welcome back to bail reform, Tennessee – sort of. Let’s hope your experiences are less fraught than those of some other states, although your initial return to the topic raises some concerns about the eagerness some have to put people who are innocent until proven guilty behind bars. It is still desirable to minimize the use of bail, because bail is a relic of colonial times that has no place in a society that seeks justice for all.
Bail, for those unclear on what it is, is a deposit that someone who’s been arrested can pay to avoid waiting in jail for their charges to be resolved.
People who can afford ...
“I don’t think she was a lost cause”: How one Colorado overdose victim fell through the cracks
April 14, 2024
By: Meg Wingerter
People who have both a mental illness and a substance-use disorder often struggle to get treatment that addresses all their needs, because most providers still primarily focus on one or the other, said Vincent Atchity, president and CEO of Mental Health Colorado. Mental health facilities often won’t admit people in active addiction, he said.
The Denver area needs more “housing first” options, which get people off the street even if they aren’t ready to stop using drugs immediately, said Atchity, of Mental Health Colorado. Offering wraparound services where people live increases the odds they’ll agree ...
Colorado legislators set aside $7.2 million to fund longer psychiatric hospital stays
March 29, 2024
By: Seth Klamman
Once the money’s appropriated, a waiver expanding hospital stays would need to be approved by the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. But other states have already taken similar steps, meaning approval is likely. Much of the money set aside in the state’s budget — $5 million — is federal.
“By prioritizing funding for these Coloradans to be able to get the care they need rather than be prematurely discharged, we are saving state resources in the long run and creating healthier communities,” Vincent Atchity, the president and CEO of Mental Health Colorado, said in a statement. “Pol...
400 people with mental illness are sitting in Colorado jails. Some state lawmakers want to divert them to treatment instead.
March 27, 2024
By: Jennifer Brown
About 30 people testified in favor of the bill, including Denver District Attorney Beth McCann and Maureen Cain, policy director for the Office of the Colorado State Public Defender.
Cain said the waitlist is “the most significant injustice” witnessed in courtrooms across the state, according to a survey of public defenders. “These poor people will keep coming back and we can’t wait any longer,” she said.
At the news conference, where supporters of the bill carried “Care Not Cuffs” signs, Mental Health Colorado CEO Vincent Atchity said the legislation would create “real meaningful change....
Colorado has the nation’s third-longest waitlist for people charged with crimes and ordered into psychiatric treatment
January 24, 2024
By: Jennifer Brown
But private hospitals typically do not take patients who have been ordered into treatment through the criminal justice system. And private hospitals often do not take people with the most severe behavioral problems or those who cannot pay, which means state hospitals are sometimes the only option.
Mental Health Colorado president Vincent Atchity called on Colorado to “disentangle” mental health care from the criminal justice system.
“The number of people being held in Colorado jails when they should be getting health care is an unacceptable tragedy,” he said. “Not only are their rights being ...
Colorado addiction experts prioritize care for individuals leaving carceral settings
November 7, 2023
By: Shane Ersland
Helping Coloradans who struggle with addiction, particularly for individuals transitioning out of a carceral setting, will require greater availability of adequate treatment services in the state, according to health leaders.
Harm Reduction Action Center Executive Director Lisa Raville and Mental Health Colorado President and CEO Vincent Atchity discussed the state’s addiction-related challenges at the 2023 Colorado State of Reform Health Policy Conference last month.
“At Mental Health Colorado, we acknowledge that humans have used a wide variety of substances, ranging from caffeine and tea to things ...
