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Urged to support
NE CT service system
DAYVILLE — United Services, Inc. recently updated local state legislators on the record increases in services delivered to residents in the last year, and United Services continued efforts and innovations to meet the rising need.
Dramatic increases to the agency’s Crisis Response Services program was a major focus of the meeting. Services provided by the agency’s Crisis team, which responds to individuals experiencing a mental health crisis by phone or in person in the agency’s clinics or out in the community, have increased by 534 percent in the past two years.
Other programs, such as the agency’s Adult Outpatient and Child Guidance clinics, are operating at a 20 to 40 percent increase in clients served over the previous year. The agency continues to see a large number of truancy and juvenile review board referrals, providing a critical safety net for youth struggling with the many stresses of the pandemic.
United Services shared innovations to meet this skyrocketing need, including the application for and award of a competitive federal grant that will greatly expand the region’s crisis response capacity.
Funding and service system inequities continue to adversely affect northeastern Connecticut residents, according to the agency. Board members called for legislators to support United Services programs, which have been underfunded for years. They also urged the delegation to support increases in funding to non-profit providers and increases in the Medicaid rates to address a staffing and services crisis in the state.
“United Services has always been here for northeastern Connecticut, and our region has needed us more in the past two years than ever before,” said United Services President/CEO Diane L. Manning. “We are grateful to the members of our General Assembly delegation who are committed to working with us to continue to advocate for the mental health service system so many residents rely on.”
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