Priority Admissions Dashboard Quarterly Reports

Direct Care and Treatment (DCT), is required by statute to publish quarterly data on "priority admissions" to state-operated behavioral health programs. Under state law, DCT must give priority admission to civilly committed individuals who are waiting in jails or correctional facilities or who have been referred for competency attainment or competency examination. Admissions are made using a special framework that considers the patient's severity of illness, treatment needs, patient safety, public safety, and other factors.  

First Quarter Data: July 1 to Sept. 30, 2025

The dashboard provides a snapshot of DCT's priority admissions from July 1, 2025, through Sept. 30, 2025. This period represents the first quarter of the state fiscal year 2026. Admissions are to programs in the agency’s Community Based Services (CBS), Forensic Services (FS) and Mental Health and Substance Abuse Treatment Services (MHSATS) service lines.

Key trends for the quarter show:

• A 22% increase in new priority referrals compared to the prior quarter
• The wait time for priority admissions to an MHSATS program averaged 18 days or fewer for the quarter
• Despite an increased number of new referrals, the wait time for admissions showed improvement  

Although overall admission numbers during the quarter were slightly lower, wait times for admission show a significant decrease for the MHSATS service line, which includes the Anoka-Metro Regional Treatment Center and the network of six Community Behavioral Health Hospitals. Wait times for admission to Forensic Services, which includes the Forensic Mental Health Program in St. Peter, trended slightly downward.