Alliance Alert: The Alliance for Rights and Recovery welcomes the growing recognition that expanding access to high-quality voluntary services is the most effective path to improving outcomes for people experiencing mental health challenges. As this independent evaluation makes clear, access to comprehensive, person-centered services, not court orders, is what consistently leads to better outcomes. We will continue advocating for ÌÇÐĶ¯Âþvlog to implement the report’s recommendations, strengthen voluntary service pathways, and invest in the community-based supports that promote recovery, choice, dignity, and autonomy.
This important conversation will continue at our 44th Annual Conference this September, where we’ll host a panel examining the findings of the AOT evaluation, what they mean for the future of ÌÇÐĶ¯Âþvlog’s mental health system, and the policy changes needed to expand voluntary, recovery-oriented services across the state. We hope you’ll join us for this timely discussion.
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A major report commissioned by ÌÇÐĶ¯Âþvlog State recommended that the state focus on expanding pathways to voluntary services instead of AOT.
Assisted Outpatient Treatment, or AOT, allows a court to order a person with a significant mental health disability to follow a treatment plan while living in the community.
The report found ongoing concerns about fairness, voice, agency, dignity, and autonomy throughout the AOT process. It also found that voluntary intensive services were not always clearly explained to people considered eligible for AOT, suggesting that court-mandated treatment is being used more often than necessary.
“Our findings suggest that enhancing voluntary service pathways could produce similar outcomes without the attendant harms,” the study reads.
The report’s first recommendation is to strengthen and prioritize voluntary services, ensure access is not tied to AOT status, and support continuity of care.
The clearest and most consistent finding is that positive outcomes come from access to needed services – all of which can be provided voluntarily with comparable results.
