New Study Finds That Outpatient Treatment for People with Mental Illness Significantly Reduces Arrest Rates

June 25, 2013

A new study from North Carolina State University, the Research Triangle Institute, and the University of South Florida found that outpatient treatment of mental illness significantly reduces arrest rates for people with mental health problems. This study asserts that providing mental health care is not only advantageous to people with mental illness but also benefits society by saving taxpayers’ money. Each year, more than two million adults with serious mental illness are admitted to jails. The researchers hoped to prove that treating mental illness can keep people with mental health problems out of trouble with the law. Indeed, the researchers determined that people receiving medication or utilizing outpatient services were significantly less likely to be arrested. For more information on the study’s findings, please read the rest of the article here.