Thousands of Children with Mental Illness Incarcerated Awaiting Mental Health Treatment

[Nicholas D Wolfwood]

http://www.bazelon.org/newsroom/archive/2004/7-7-04jjhearing.htm

WASHINGTON (July 7, 2004)—Thousands of children with mental illnesses await needed community mental health services in juvenile detention centers across the country, according to a new report released at a hearing in the U.S. Senate’s Governmental Affairs Committee this morning.

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The survey—commissioned by Representative Henry Waxman (D-CA) and Senator Susan Collins (R-ME) and conducted by the Special Investigations Division of the minority staff of the Government Reform Committee of the U.S. House of Representatives—is the first Congressional investigation to look specifically at children with mental health needs unnecessarily incarcerated in juvenile detention centers because they are awaiting services in the community. Key findings in the report include:

Thousands of children are incarcerated in juvenile detention centers awaiting mental health services in the community. Over a six-month period, nearly 15,000 incarcerated youth waited for community mental health services. Each night, nearly 2,000 youth wait in detention for community mental health services, representing 7% of all youth held in juvenile detention. Yet a quarter of the facilities surveyed reported that they provide no or poor mental health services.

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About 5-9% of children ages 9 to 17 are affected by a serious emotional disturbance (SED), according to the Surgeon General. Yet nearly four in five children who could benefit from mental health services do not receive them.

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And then we wonder why Virginia Tech and Columbine happens.

[renate]

1. good find

There's probably no reason to think that the situation is any better now.

Yet another reason (#96,306) to wish that Gore had won in 2000... Tipper was a big proponent of equitable insurance coverage for mental health treatment. (Of course, how many of these kids wouldn't have had health insurance? But I'm sure she would have continued to work on demystifying and destigmatizing mental illness, like she did while Gore was VP.)

[Ilsa]

2. It's an older article but it explains to some degree why things are

the way they are now, if those kids progressed out of juvie and into the public without support.