Essex County Jail Mental Health Diversion Program Named National Program of the Year
The Essex County Correctional Facility and Silver Lake Hospital mental health treatment and diversion pathway received the 2026 Program of the Year award from the National Commission on Correctional Health Care, the county announced.
An Essex County mental health program tied to the county jail has been named the best of its kind in the country for 2026. Essex County Executive Joseph N. DiVincenzo Jr., CFG Health and Silver Lake Hospital in Newark announced that the Essex County Correctional Facility-Silver Lake Hospital Mental Health Treatment and Diversion Pathway received the 2026 Program of the Year award from the National Commission on Correctional Health Care.
The award was presented Oct. 28, 2026, during the commission's annual convention in Las Vegas, according to the county's announcement.
The pathway was created through a collaboration among the county executive and the correctional facility's leadership, CFG Health, Silver Lake Hospital, the Essex County Civilian Task Force and the New Jersey departments of corrections and health, the county said.
The program's name describes its twin aims: mental health treatment and diversion for people in the correctional system. The county presented the national award as recognition of that partnership, which links the Essex County Correctional Facility with Silver Lake Hospital in Newark.
