Peer Benefits: Helping Expand a Victim Compensation Program's Reach

Community violence impacts both the physical and mental health of survivors making it necessary for them to access medical care and mental health services. State Victim of Crime programs, like California Victim Compensation Program, provide essential resources to aid in the healing process. Because a disproportionate amount of young men of color experience community violence, it is essential to provide services that meet their unique needs, especially nontraditional mental health services.  Youth ALIVE! researched and crafted a state bill that provides reimbursement for non-clinical peer counseling services for victims of community violence modeled after domestic violence legislation. The bill provides reimbursement for comparable services for community violence victims.

To better support its clients and other survivors of community violence throughout the state, Youth ALIVE! drafted legislation to provide reimbursement for community violence peer counselors. The bill, successfully signed in to law by California’s governor in September 2014, allows reimbursement for non-clinical mental health support for survivors of domestic violence. Youth ALIVE!’s 20 year history working with survivors of community violence has demonstrated that the population most impacted by community violence are often reticent to access traditional clinical mental health services. Peer counselors serve as an important form of support and a potential bridge to more traditional services.

This presentation will describe Youth ALIVE!’s methods for establishing buy-in for peer-counselor reimbursement legislation, discuss the successes and challenges learned from proposing this legislation, and explain the implementation process and the importance of inclusion of stakeholders when defining the requirements for the work.