The Department of Children and Families (DCF) has statutory authority to provide mental health services for children. The mission of DCF is "to protect children, strengthen families, and help children and youth reach their fullest potential." Limited mental health services are provided in detention facilities by individual contractors who are contracted by the Judicial Branch Court Support Services Division.

Riverview Hospital in Middletown is the only state psychiatric hospital for children under age 18. This bed facility generally serves children in DCF custody or in pending delinquency or family with service needs cases. Its waiting list averages 20 children. DCF also operates two residential facilities, High Meadows and Connecticut Children's Place. These facilities serve children with subacute need. The state's heavy reliance on Riverview for psychiatric care, its failure to support community based services and or other residential facilities has resulted in a bottle neck effect with children who need services often waiting for long periods for available beds in residential placement or juvenile justice detention facilities.

• A Connecticut court judge has two options for evaluating the mental health of children and youth who are arrested: (1) a brief 45 minute to three hour mental health assessment by court contractors who are remunerated at substandard rates (e.g. $140/evaluation vs. $1200/evaluation for private sector) or (2) an intensive 30 day inpatient evaluation at the Riverview Hospital. Advocates view the first option is inadequate and the Riverview option is not appropriate for the majority of the cases referred by the court.
• 20% of the court-ordered Riverview evaluations never occur because of the lengthy waiting list. Youngsters are instead placed in residential treatment centers without a comprehensive assessment to identify their treatment needs.

• A Connecticut court judge has two options for evaluating the mental health of children and youth who are arrested: (1) a brief 45 minute to three hour mental health assessment by court contractors who are remunerated at substandard rates (e.g. $140/evaluation vs. $1200/evaluation for private sector) or (2) an intensive 30 day inpatient evaluation at the Riverview Hospital. Advocates view the first option is inadequate and the Riverview option is not appropriate for the majority of the cases referred by the court.
• 20% of the court-ordered Riverview evaluations never occur because of the lengthy waiting list. Youngsters are instead placed in residential treatment centers without a comprehensive assessment to identify their treatment needs.
• The prevalence of mental health problems among youth in Connecticut's detention centers is three to four times greater than among other youth their age.
• 62% of the youth in Connecticut detention centers have undiagnosed mental health issues requiring "further exploration." The Judicial Department reported that each day about 30%of the youth in the 3 juvenile detention centers are there because there is no mental health residential facility available.
• Many youth in Connecticut detention centers have past histories of mental health treatment: 58% had prior outpatient treatment; 16% had a prior psychiatric in-patient stay; 14% had a prior residential placement.
• On any given day, between 3 to 7 youth in Connecticut detention centers are on suicide precautions.
• 50% of girls at Long Lane and more than 33% of the boys at Connecticut Training School (CJTS) reported having serious emotional problems in the last year. 31% of the girls in Long Lane reported attempting suicide in the past year, and 19% of the boys. This is far in excess of statewide and national average rates of 8.3 and 10.7 respectively.
  

• The state spends 70% of its mental health budget on placing 18% of kids in its custody in institutions. The remaining 30% of funds go to community and home based services for the remaining 82% of the children enrolled in HUSKY.
• DCF spends 83% of its $109 million in mental health funds for children in its custody. Only $18 million was spent on services for children not in DCF custody.
• DCF, DSS, and DMHAS are collaborating to provide community and home based services for more children with mental health problems through Community Kidcare.
• Kidcare is intended to serve 184,000 poor and needy children but has been appropriated only $14.3 million, this would mean a per kid expenditure of 13¢, for FY'02-'03.
  

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