Protection & advocacy for individuals with mntl illness

The Department of Health and Human Services Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration awarded Disability Rights South Dakota $632,033 under the Protection and Advocacy for Individuals with Mental Illness (PAIMI) program on October 1, 2025.

Disability Rights South Dakota, the designated Protection and Advocacy System for South Dakota, delivers legal representation, advocacy, and support services to adults with serious mental illness and children with serious emotional disturbances. The PAIMI program funds investigation of abuse and neglect complaints, pursuit of administrative and legal remedies to address rights violations, and activities ensuring enforcement of constitutional, federal, and state statutes protecting individuals with mental illness.

Service priority extends to individuals at risk for abuse, neglect, or civil rights violations while residing in care or treatment facilities, including those in the process of admission to such facilities, those being transported, or those involuntarily confined in municipal detention facilities, jails, or prisons. Community-based services for individuals living in their own homes or other community settings are available as determined by the organization's priorities and available resources.

The award obligated $632,033 for a period of performance from October 1, 2025, through September 30, 2027. Place of performance is Pierre, South Dakota.