The mission of Drug Courts is to stop the abuse of alcohol and other drugs and related criminal activity. Drug Courts are unique because they build a close collaborative relationship between criminal justice and drug treatment professionals.
While administered by the Administrative Office of the Courts (AOC), Drug Court legislation calls for all Drug Court substance abuse treatment funds to be allocated to the Department of Human Services, Division of Mental Health and Addiction Services (DMHAS). A memorandum of agreement has been signed between the AOC and DMHAS in which DMHAS contracts with third parties to execute service contracts with DMHAS licensed treatment providers in New Jersey to provide the Drug Courts with the full continuum of care.
DMHAS has a pivotal role in the success of Drug Courts. DMHAS' primary duties include:
Develop, Support, and Monitor the Treatment Provider NetworkIdentify service gaps in the available continuum of care; recruit new providers into the network; establish provider network membership criteria; review and approve or reject all applications for the providers network; monitor leves of service of network providers to track utilization; review program administration, staffing, and all other aspects of the treatment program's operation; approve extension requests and monitoring treatment provider adherence to contractual and licensure requirements