| The Mental Health Division serves as the administrative arm of the Mental Health Board, a state-mandated body charged with overseeing the funding and operation of the public mental health system. The board meets monthly to make program and budget recommendations and to conduct reviews of funded agencies. The board is comprised of county residents who utilize, or advocate on behalf of, community mental health services. In addition to coordinating the activities of the Mental Health Board, the Mental Health Division is responsible for system coordination, planning and advocacy, the Subsidized Pharmaceutical Program and the Youth Incentive Program (YIP).
System coordination, planning and advocacy comprise the main focus of the division. The division coordinates initiatives of the state Department of Human Services and county government. It works in partnership with community agencies to enhance services and ensure the success of mandated programs.
In addition to fall’s tragic events, the year 2001 also brought with it the prospect of major reforms in both the adult and children’s systems. The adult system focused on the state’s plan to reconfigure Greystone Park Psychiatric Hospital. Greystone, serving northern New Jersey, is a state-operated institution providing care to approximately 600 patients, about 125 of who were from Bergen County. The reconfiguration plan focused on closing the institution and building a smaller, more modern hospital on the Greystone grounds. The children’s systems reforms can be found in the Child and Adolescent section.
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The community mental health board directs the priority funding for services for Bergen County residents.
Mental Health Board
Standing Meetings 2007
Bergen County
Children's Interagency Coordinating Council (CIACC)
Statement of Purpose 
Standing Meetings 2007
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The state also continued to implement supportive housing initiatives, intended to move clients out of existing group homes into apartments with support services. The group home beds would then be available for clients coming out of Greystone or other state-funded inpatient units. The initiatives provide rental assistance certificates to clients who are ready to move into less restrictive settings. The public service system as a whole has experienced a tremendous influx of rental certificates resulting in various populations (e.g., mentally ill, welfare- to-work, etc.) competing against each other to secure affordable apartments in a dwindling pool of options. In an effort to promote the development of housing for the mentally ill, the Mental Health Board, along with the department, was successful in securing $17,000 from the Bergen County Division of Community Development. The funds will be used to assess the current affordable housing stock and the status of local municipalities’ compliance with Mount Laurel housing guidelines.
Additionally, the monies will help train board members and other speakers, who will make presentations to local planning boards and other organizations to promote acceptance of the mentally ill into their communities. The funds will also enable the board to develop a comprehensive waiting list for county-based residential services. The waiting list will be a valuable tool to use in applying for grants, advocating for system enhancements and documenting need for the legislature.
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