Claim # 2
Mental health disorder in the juvenile justice system is an economic issue because the systems have budget due to revenue. The money is spent on youth’s incarceration, whereas treatment and rehabilitation services are cut or reduce, in order to balance the budget. For example, it cost 50,000 to 80,000 a year to lock a child up in a detention facility, and mental health service are reduced or eliminated to balance their budget, (The National Alliance on Mental Illness, 2004). As a result to this, many juvenile are not able to receive sufficient treatment because of budget cuts. For instance, Studies have also shown that the majority of young people in need of mental health services that do not receive them are 75-80 % (Kataoka, Zhang, & Wells, 2002). This is an economic issue because money is need for funding programs and treatment for mental health disorders in the juvenile system.