Providing behavioral health to inmates with mental health and substance abuse disorders in correctional facilities is important for helping to maintain a safe prison environment and reducing rates of recidivism once those inmates transition out of the prison system. However, due to behavioral health workforce shortages and other factors, most prisoners do not receive adequate treatment.

This report describes a study that utilized surveys of 20 organizational representatives at correctional facilities in 16 states to examine strategies for improving the behavioral health workforce capacity in prisons and barriers to achieving this goal.