CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa (KCRG) – Johnson County is the first county in Iowa to operate a court-mandated treatment program for people with psychosis, and now Linn County is considering a similar approach.
The program, called Assisted Outpatient Treatment (AOT), coordinates courts, doctors and social workers to ensure people with serious mental illness receive care and follow through with treatment plans. It operates on a treatment model, not a punishment model, with no jail involved, only coordinated services.
Since launching in 2023, 52 people in Johnson County have participated in the program. In two years, their hospital stays dropped 97%, a savings of more than $3.5 million. That figure does not include savings from keeping people with mental illness out of jail…