Innovations in Illinois to Increase Coverage and Capacity for Justice-Involved Populations

Jails, prisons, probation/parole agencies manage large number of people with untreated health conditions, including mental illness, substance use disorders and chronic medical conditions. With the expansion of Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act in Illinois, a substantial proportion of people under justice supervision are now eligible for health coverage, including coverage for mental health and substance use disorder treatment.

Recognizing the importance of enrolling this population into coverage, the Governor's Office, state agency leaders, county executives, the judiciary, sheriffs and the state department of corrections collaborated to establish systems to enroll justice-involved people into health coverage. A variety of strategies are employed to maximize reach, including in-jail and in-prison application processes, navigators and application assistors in the community, and partnering with local health centers. Thousands of applications for coverage have been initiated, including more than 12,000 applications from Cook County jail.

With such a substantial number of people now eligible for and enrolled in health coverage, the public health system must grow to meet demand. Various stakeholders in Illinois came together to address capacity issues to ensure continuity of care for those coming out of incarceration and viable options for treatment outside the correctional system.

This presentation will describe the systems that have been initiated in Illinois for enrolling the justice-involved. The presenter will describe how relationships were formed between law enforcement entities and community stakeholders to focus on common goals. Additionally, the presenter will detail efforts to increase capacity for community-based mental health and substance use disorder services.