Protection & advocacy for individuals with mntl illness

The Department of Health and Human Services Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration awarded Disability Rights Connecticut, Inc. $632,033 on October 1, 2025, under the Protection and Advocacy for Individuals with Mental Illness (PAIMI) program (CFDA 93.138), a formula grant supporting protection and advocacy services in Connecticut through September 30, 2027.

Disability Rights Connecticut delivers investigation of abuse and neglect complaints, legal representation, and advocacy services protecting the rights of adults with serious mental illness and children with serious emotional disturbances. The organization pursues administrative and legal remedies to address rights violations and ensures enforcement of constitutional and federal and state statutes. Service priority extends to individuals at risk for abuse or neglect in care or treatment facilities, individuals in community settings including their own homes, individuals in the process of admission to facilities, and individuals involuntarily confined in municipal detention facilities, jails, or prisons, as determined by the organization's program priorities and available resources.

Disability Rights Connecticut operates as Connecticut's designated protection and advocacy system for disability rights under the Developmental Disabilities Assistance and Bill of Rights Act of 2000. The organization concurrently maintains multiple protection and advocacy program awards through SAMHSA's Center for Mental Health Services, the Administration on Disabilities, the Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services, and the Social Security Administration, delivering systemic advocacy, policy change efforts, community integration facilitation, benefits counseling, and educational outreach across Connecticut's disability community.