CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo. — A Cape Girardeau-based behavioral health provider is rolling out a new program that aims to get adults facing mental health and substance use challenges into treatment before they end up in jail.
The Community Counseling Center (CCC) is introducing the Early Diversion Program, which will serve Bollinger, Cape Girardeau, Madison, Perry and Ste. Genevieve counties, according to KFVS12 and KBSI FOX23.
Treatment before an arrest
The program is designed to connect people with care before an arrest or booking into jail, working with law enforcement, first responders, courts, health care providers and other community partners. Its stated goal is to reduce avoidable involvement with the justice system while helping individuals move toward stability and recovery.
According to the outlets’ reporting, the program will offer outreach, mental health and substance use screenings, short-term support and follow-up to help people begin services. Staff will also connect participants with housing resources, veterans’ services and other community supports, and help address barriers such as transportation and limited access to care in rural areas.
CCC job postings for the program, first advertised in October, describe outreach specialists who respond alongside law enforcement and EMS on behavioral health calls, complete screenings and provide short-term care coordination — with services generally lasting no more than three months — according to listings mirrored on iHire and Arizona State University’s career services board. The program will also offer community education and training.
KBSI reports that an Early Diversion Coalition will bring local organizations together to identify gaps in services and improve referrals to treatment.
Federal funding behind the program
The effort is being carried out in partnership with the Missouri Department of Mental Health’s Division of Behavioral Health, with federal funding from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA).
Federal grant records list a SAMHSA award, H79SM091501, to the Missouri Department of Mental Health for a “Behavioral Health Partnerships for Early Diversion of Adults and Youth” project, with an action amount of $650,000 recorded in September 2026 in the HHS TAGGS grants database. The award falls under SAMHSA’s SM-26-025 funding opportunity, which offers up to $650,000 per year for up to five years to states and local governments to divert people at risk of justice involvement to community-based services before arrest or booking.
A federal grant tracking site, GovTribe, describes the funded “Southeast Missouri Early Diversion Initiative” as covering seven counties — adding Mississippi and Scott counties to the five CCC has named in its launch — though that description could not be independently confirmed and CCC’s announcements have consistently listed five counties.
Hiring underway
CCC is hiring an Early Diversion Program Coordinator and Early Diversion Outreach Specialists to stand up the program, KBSI reported. A LinkedIn post from the agency dated Oct. 28 says the positions will be based in Cape Girardeau, Fredericktown and Perryville, with travel required across all five counties, including Marble Hill and Ste. Genevieve. Specialist postings list pay of roughly $20 to $22.40 an hour.
Neither CCC nor the Department of Mental Health has publicly announced a start date for the program, and it was not immediately clear how many staff will be hired.