Community -Based Diversion Programs

It is the mission of New York State Office of Mental Health to promote the mental health of all New Yorkers, with a particular focus on providing hope and recovery for individuals with serious mental illness. This mission translates to our Division of Forensic Services, which provides mental health services for justice-involved adults. Within OMH’s Division of Forensic Services, the Diversion Center plays a key role in supporting New York State jurisdictions in the development, implementation, evaluation, and replication of initiatives to reduce the arrest and incarceration of persons meeting specific criteria for a serious mental illness (SMI) as well as behavioral health issues presenting in complex and chronic ways which impact overall functioning. Since 2018, the Diversion Center has provided funding to support diversion services for adults, aimed at improving outcomes for individuals involved in both the criminal justice system and mental health service system. Services focus on diverting individuals from incarceration and/or reducing the risk of recidivism. The Diversion Center views diversion programming through the lens of the Sequential Intercept Model (SIM) to best understand opportunities to divert individuals from the criminal justice system. The Sequential Intercept Model (SIM) views the criminal justice system as a series of six intercepts: community services, law enforcement, initial detention/initial court hearings, jails/courts, reentry, and community corrections. This is a linear process that represents a typical progression an individual might experience through the criminal justice system. Please refer to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) website for more information on the SIM. NYS OMH is announcing this Request for Proposals (RFP) for the development or enhancement of diversion programs, rooted in evidence-based programming or emerging promising practice, at any intercept point on the SIM, that is designed to reduce the risk of criminal justice involvement for adults with mental health and/or behavioral health needs. Notice: Notification of intent to apply should be made to the Local Governmental Unit (county director of community services) for each county to be served under the program application, as defined in Section 41 of the New York State Mental Hygiene Law. Proof of this notification is required to be uploaded in SFS and should not be sent directly to the procurement unit. The full RFP can be found at: https://omh.ny.gov/omhweb/rfp/ All applicants must be Prequalified by the due date/time of the RFP. All applications/proposals must be submitted through the Statewide Financial System. Business enterprises awarded an identical or substantially similar procurement contract within the past five years: None Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Business (SDVOB) SDVOB Goal: 0.00% Minority / Women Business Enterprise contracting goals (MWBE) MBE Goal: 0.00% WBE Goal: 0.00% Disadvantaged Business Enterprise contracting goals (DBE) DBE Goal: 0.00%