On this edition of Local Motion, KVNF's Lisa Young interviews Jackie Felix, administrator of the Delta County Detention Center Jail Based Behavioral Health Services program and Joel Watts, owner/founder of Integrated Insight Community Care in Delta.
In May 2018 the Colorado General Assembly passed Senate Bill 18-250, which at that time allocated $5.1 million in additional funding to the Jail Based Behavioral Health Services or JBBS program to address gaps in services for mental health disorder screening, assessment, diagnosis and treatment.
JBBS has been operational since 2011 using funding from the Correctional Treatment Cash Fund. The jail based program aims to provide appropriate behavioral health services to inmates while supporting continuity of care within the community after release from incarceration.
To carry out the JBBS program, sheriff departments in Colorado partner with local community provider(s) who can demonstrate the ability to provide services within the jail, and provide or link individuals releasing from jail to free or low cost services in the community.
This approach is meant to shorter jail sentences and decreased recidivism through better identification and treatment of behavioral health needs.
