Friday, September 26, 2003

Federal Funding of Mental Health Courts in Jeopardy
A NAMI alert, urging concerned advocates to contact legislators - " Congress first authorized the federal Mental Health Courts program as part of legislation passed in 2000 (P.L. 106-515). This bipartisan legislation was sponsored by Senator Mike DeWine (R-OH) and Representative Ted Strickland (D-OH). The establishment of mental health courts is rapidly emerging as one of the most successful strategies to address the stark reality that jails and prisons have become the nation's depository for people with severe mental illnesses. Currently, there are nearly 100 Mental Health Courts in existence around the country. ... The elimination of federal support for these innovative programs in FY 2004 would be a serious mistake. Yet, this may well occur. The House of Representatives allocated no money for these courts in its FY 2004 Appropriations bill. Moreover, the Senate Commerce, Justice, State and the Judiciary Appropriations Subcommittee, which has responsibility for funding this program, similarly appropriated no money for these courts."