JACKSON – Ocean County Prosecutor Joseph D. Coronato announced on Aug. 6 that his Veterans Diversion Program will receive financial support from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA).
SAMHSA has awarded an initial grant of $237,986 to the county in support of a veterans behavioral health partnership initiative with a possible additional $1.29 million award depending upon grant availability and program success, according to a press release.
The total grant award proposal will manifest itself in a five-year project that will begin on Sept. 30, 2018 and run through Sept. 29, 2023.
Based upon the availability of funds and satisfactory progress of the project, the grant award summary for the life of the project is as follows; year one, $237,986; year two, $329,855; year three, $329,839; year four, $329,075; and year five, $304,268, for a total of $1.53 million.
Program co-directors for the initiative will be Dr. Jamie Busch of the Ocean County Department of Human Services, and Senior Assistant Prosecutor Renee White of the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office.
One aspect of the initiative will be to continue the work of diverting veterans out of the criminal justice system and into treatment for mental health issues and/or substance abuse disorders, according to the press release.
The prosecutor’s office has been working on its Veterans Diversion Program with Ocean Mental Health Services since March 2016. The grant will allow the prosecutor’s office to expand the program, serving more veterans without actually filing criminal charges, according to the press release.
Goals of the Veterans Diversion Program include increasing the amount of critical incident training for certified police officers in the county who are veterans; increasing the speed in which individuals with veteran status in jail are identified and referred to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) for screening; increasing the speed in which veterans in the jail engage in mental health/drug treatment in inpatient/outpatient settings; increasing the speed in which VA records/mental health records are acquired in order to facilitate proper assessment and treatment; ensuring “continuity of care” in the treatment of veterans in the program; and facilitating closer monitoring of medication administration and compliance.
