Data Note
No. 43, 2013

People Served in Community Mental Health Programs and Employment
By Stephanie Wallace and Frank A. Smith

Data Source: FY2002–-2011 Center for Mental Health Services (CMHS) Uniform Reporting System (URS)

The Substance Abuse & Mental Health Services Administration Center for Mental Health Services (CMHS) provides guidance and technical assistance to decision makers at all levels of government on the design, structure, content, and use of mental health information systems. The goal is to improve the quality of mental health programs and service delivery. CMHS operates the only program in the nation that focuses on the development of data standards that provide the basis for uniform, comparable, high-quality statistics on mental health services. This makes it a model in the health care statistics field. Data is stored in the Uniform Reporting System Output Tables.

State mental health agencies provide a wide range of supports, including rehabilitation services and vocational and pre-vocational training, as well as supported and competitive employment supports. This Data Note explores how states vary in number and percentage of individuals who are employed among those served in Community Mental Health Programs (CMHPs), i.e., programs with all services provided in the community, rather than in an inpatient setting. It also explores national trends that occurred from 2002 to 2011.

“Employed” is defined as competitively employed1 (full- or part-time) at the last CMHP assessment available during the reporting year. Figure 1 shows an overall downward trend in employment for individuals served in CMHPs from 2002 to 2011. Despite a peak of 23% in 2008, the percentage of individuals served in CMHPs who are employed has since declined to 19.6% in 2011.

The number and percentage of individuals in CMHPs who were employed in each state is presented in Table 1. In 2011, the percentage employed varied from 6.9% in Maine to 43.9% in Wyoming. The wide range in number and percentage of individuals employed is not necessarily indicative of success or failure when making comparisons among states. Factors such as the percentage of people served in CMHPs for whom employment status is known can affect the numbers and percentages reported. These differences suggest a need for further research to identify the factors responsible for such wide variation, and to determine successful strategies for gaining employment outcomes for people served in CMHPs.

1	Competitive employment is defined as a community job that any person can apply for, in integrated settings (and in regular contact with workers without disabilities), that pays at least minimum wage.

Figure 1. Percentage of people served who are employed (number of states = 40)

Table 1. Number of People in CMHPs Who were Served and Employed by State in 2011

State	Number of people served by CMHPs*	(A) Number of people employed	(B)Percentage of people served who are employed
(B/A)	
AK	 -- 	 -- 	--	
AL	 75,276 	 8,176 	10.9	
AR	 40,639 	 8,474 	20.9	
AZ	 101,212 	 16,686 	16.5	
CA	 -- 	 -- 	--	
CO	 55,180 	 12,164 	22.0	
CT	 43,543 	 8,779 	20.2	
DC	 -- 	 -- 	--	
DE	 3,576 	 756 	21.1	
FL	 183,325 	 28,554 	15.6	
GA	 -- 	 -- 	--	
HI	 5,545 	 577 	10.4	
IA	 21,386 	 6,600 	30.9	
ID	 6,121 	 1,192 	19.5	
IL	 94,819 	 18,092 	19.1	
IN	 60,957 	 11,744 	19.3	
KS	 36,840 	 10,771 	29.2	
KY	 90,805 	 14,630 	16.1	
LA	 35,069 	 3,802 	10.8	
MA	 -- 	 -- 	--	
MD	 74,410 	 12,479 	16.8	
ME	 10,455 	 726 	6.9	
MI	 62,528 	 19,623 	31.4	
MN	 15,684 	 2,354 	15.0	
MO	 22,704 	 2,465 	10.9	
MS	 -- 	 -- 	--	
MT	 3,700 	 539 	14.6	
NC	 162,513 	 27,659 	17.0	
ND	 -- 	 -- 	--	
NE	 18,053 	 5,156 	28.6	
NH	 26,146 	 8,542 	32.7	
NJ	 266,556 	 75,012 	28.1	
NM	 9,743 	 2,298 	23.6	
NV	 19,893 	 3,270 	16.4	
NY	 423,953 	 96,639 	22.8	
OH	 68,867 	 10,582 	15.4	
OK	 48,144 	 9,200 	19.1	
OR	 -- 	 -- 	--	
PA	 -- 	 -- 	--	
RI	 18,701 	 3,482 	18.6	
SC	 45,580 	 5,681 	12.5	
SD	 -- 	 -- 	--	
TN	 -- 	 -- 	--	
TX	 171,905 	 23,774 	13.8	
UT	 29,368 	 5,878 	20.0	
VA	 68,911 	 12,879 	18.7	
VT	 10,029 	 2,208 	22.0	
WA	 72,244 	 6,596 	9.1	
WI	 11,917 	 2,907 	24.4	
WV	 -- 	 -- 	--	
WY	 12,343 	 5,419 	43.9	
All states with data (n = 40)	 2,528,640 	 496,365 	19.6	
*This column includes only people for whom employment status was known at the time of data collection.

Suggested Citation
Wallace, S., & Smith, F. A. (2013). People served in community mental health programs and employment. Data Note Series, Data Note 43. Boston, MA: University of Massachusetts Boston, Institute for Community Inclusion.

Acknowledgments
The development of this DataNote was funded by grant R40MC22646 through the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Health Resources and Services Administration, Maternal and Child Health Research Program. This is a publication of StateData.info, funded in part by the Administration on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (#90DN0295). State Data is a project of the Institute for Community Inclusion at the University of Massachusetts Boston.