Wellpath would like to congratulate the County of San Luis Obispo for being recognized as an “Innovator County” by the Stepping Up Initiative. Above is a news segment from KSBY-TV highlighting the recognition.
Stepping Up is a nationwide effort to reduce the number of people with mental illnesses in jails. The initiative asks communities to come together to develop an action plan that can be used to achieve measurable impact in local criminal justice systems of all sizes across the country.
To be recognized as an “Innovator,” SLO county has defined what it means to be “seriously mentally ill,” screen every person booked into the jail for mental illness, and collect data on the population of people with mental illnesses in the jail.
Approximately 2 million times each year, people who have serious mental illnesses are admitted to jails across the nation. Many of those people incarcerated with acute mental illness have gone undiagnosed and untreated (e.g. schizophrenia). Wellpath believes that additional treatment of behavioral health disorders has the potential to meaningfully reduce long-term recidivism rates, and thus the broader societal crisis driven by mental healthcare issues.
Wellpath is honored to partner with innovators like the County of San Luis Obispo—aligning us with our “patients-first” mission in providing quality care to every patient with compassion, collaboration, and innovation.
To learn more about the Stepping Up Initiative, watch this video below.