Rape-related services in federally funded community mental health centers

Amendments to the Community Mental Health Centers Act (Public Law 94-63) required community mental health centers (CMHCs) to provide such rape-related services as rape prevention and control, and to assure service availability to rape victims and their families. A questionnaire designed to assess how rape-related services are delivered was mailed to directors of 107 federally funded comprehensive CMHCs in a seven-state region. Fifty-five responses were received, indicating that rape-related services were offered by approximately two-thirds of the centers, 65% of which considered their rape-related services to be less comprehensive than other services. The budget for rape services was less than $10,000 in 80% of responding centers, representing less than 0.5% of the average CMHC budget. Services provided, primarily clinical, involved crisis intervention, counseling, and psychotherapy with rape victims and their families. Prevention and educational activities accounted for less than 25% of all rape-related services at most CMHCs. The results of the study question the impact of federal mandates on local mental health services.