House Community Budget Issue Requests - Tracking Id #397 Mentally Ill/Substance Abusing Offenders Program
Requester:	Olivia Martinez		Organization:		Miami Behavioral Health Center, Inc.
Project Title:	Mentally Ill/Substance Abusing Offenders Program		Date Submitted:		01/26/2000 1:31:38 PM
District Member:	Beryl Roberts		Service Area:		Statewide
Counties Affected:	Dade
Recipient:	Miami Behavioral Health Center, Inc		Contact:		Olivia Martinez
	3850 West Flagler Street		Contact Phone:		(305) 774-3402
	Miami, Florida 33134
Project Description:
The funds are being requested for planning and operation of a program to provide outpatient and in-jail case management and treatment for offenders, misdemeanants and felons, who are mentally ill and/or substance abusers in Miami-Dade County. These offenders are disproportionately Hispanic or African Americans. In Miami-Dade County, there is a serious problem in that mentally ill and/or substance abusing offenders constantly revolve through the courts and Baker Act System. Once these individuals are stabilized in a hospital or crisis stabilization unit, there are no funds to provide outpatient services. The vast majority of these individuals are not Medicaid eligible. This situation results in great human suffering and in great cost to the tax payers, whose costs in supporting the courts and related expenses are increasing at a fast rate. Keeping offenders stable with treatment and medications is a far more humane and cheaper way of dealing with this problem.
Services Provided/Benefit to State:
To serve indigent offenders who are mentally ill and/or impaired substance abusers who revolve through the court system. This will relieve human suffering, criminality, and homeleessness, and increase public safety. In particular, it will provide care for a population which is being served through the court system, without any long term resolution, causing great unnecessary cost. Overall, this project will help avoid cost to the taxpayer.
Measurable Outcome Anticipated:
Outcomes for this project will be those of the State's existing Outcome Measurement System, plus it will also measure decrease in the revolving syndrom (In the Courts.
Amount requested from the State for this project this year:				$1,000,000
Total cost of the project:		$1,000,000

Request has been made to fund:	Operations
Is there Local Government or Private match for this request?		Unknown
Was this project previously funded by the State?		No
Is future-year funding likely to be requested?		Unknown
Was this project included in an Agency's Budget Request?		No
Was this project included in the Governor's Recommended Budget?		No
Is there a documented need for this project?		Unknown
Was this project request heard before a publicly noticed meeting of a body of elected officials (municipal, county, or state)?		Unknown