Mental Health for Children, Young Adults, and Families

The focus of the Office of Children, Young Adults & Families (OCFY) is to support Georgia’s System of Care (SOC) for uninsured children and young adults, or those with SSI Medicaid, and their families that are accessing the public behavioral health system. We accomplish this through the development of non-traditional supports for youth and families that support the traditional array of services available through Medicaid.

For help accessing these mental health services, contact your regional field office. 

Core and Specialty Services:
Core and specialty services include evaluation/assessment, diagnosis, counseling and medication, therapy (individual, group, and family), community support services, crisis assessments, and physician services. These services are provided in clinics and other locations as needed, including homes, schools, detention facilities, and other community settings. If you need services for the deaf, hard of hearing or deaf-blind, please visit Deaf Services.

MATCH (Multi-Agency Treatment Team):
In 2021, the Georgia State Legislature passed House Bill 1013, “The Mental Health Parity Act”.  Included in this legislation was the establishment of MATCH (Multi-Agency Treatment for Children) within the Georgia Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities (DBHDD).

Mobile Crisis Response Services (MCRS):
Mobile Crisis Response Services (MCRS) provides community-based, face-to-face crisis response 24 hours a day, seven days a week to individuals in an active state of crisis. MCRS offers short-term, behavioral health services for persons in need who may have been unable to successfully maintain stability. MCRS can be accessed through the Georgia Crisis and Access Line (GCAL) by calling (800) 715-4225.

Georgia Apex Program:
The Georgia Apex Program focuses on three objectives:
1.  To provide greater access to mental health services for students,
2.  To provide for early detection of students’ mental health needs, and
3.  To create and sustain coordination between Georgia’s community mental health providers and the local schools and school districts in which they reside.

The program is anchored to the DBHDD provider network (enrolled Tier I and Tier II providers).

2021 - 2022 Annual Evaluation Findings
Apex Year 6 Brief

For additional information on schools participating in the program, please contact your regional field office.

Mental Health Resiliency Support Clubhouses:
Our Mental Health Resiliency Support Clubhouses seeks to support children and families coping with isolation, stigma, and other considerations associated with mental health disorders. The clubhouses provide educational supports, employment services, peer support, family engagement, social activities, and other initiatives geared to engage youth and assist them in managing symptoms.

Youth Peer Drop In Centers:
A youth peer drop in center provides a supportive, stigma-free environment where young adults, ages 16-26, can spend time learning skills needed to make the successful transition to adulthood. Services include structured activities that assist young adults in obtaining goals related to education, employment, housing, understanding mental and behavioral health, coping skills, and living skills.

System of Care Enhancement & Expansion (SOC-EE):
SOC-EE programming seeks to improve outcomes for children, young adults, and families, managing serious mental health challenges and substance use concerns, by focusing on social determinants such as education, employment, social connectedness, accessing behavioral health services, resiliency, and vocational/independence development. 

High Fidelity Wraparound:
Statewide program provides community-based alternatives for youth (ages 5 to 17) and young adults (ages 18 to 21) with serious emotional and behavioral disturbances. The overall goal of the program is to provide High Fidelity Wraparound services and supports to safely divert youth who are at risk of admission to a Psychiatric Residential Treatment Facility (PRTF), and/or assist youth with remaining in the community and avoid readmission to a PRTF.

Crisis Stabilization:
There are four Child & Adolescent Crisis Stabilization Units (CSUs) in Georgia. Each serves youth from all over the state who are in need of short-term acute stabilization of behavioral health challenges.