Relating to mental health support for corrections officers, and making appropriations

The bill provides that the department shall develop and administer a brief annual mental health screening survey composed of to questions that seek to identify severe mental illnesses, including schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, and major depression; develop any technology necessary for a correctional facility to provide the annual mental health screening survey; hire staff necessary for a correctional facility to provide the annual mental health screening survey; establish an outreach team to refer a corrections officer whose responses to the survey indicate severe mental illness to a local mental health care provider for further assessment; provide reasonable reimbursement for costs incurred by professionals of the outreach team; and provide at least one mandatory, employer-funded, paid confidential counseling session annually for each staff member with a licensed mental health professional to ensure corrections officers have access to the support they need to reduce officer turnover, improve productivity, and foster a healthier work environment. The bill provides that an outreach team shall be composed of mental health care professionals or clinicians from mental health care centers local to the correctional facility, staff from the correctional facility when applicable, and a mental health liaison staff member who shall oversee the outreach team. If a correctional officer has been determined to need a referral to a mental health care provider, the department shall immediately notify the outreach team. The bill appropriates $400,000 to the department to carry out the requirements of the bill.