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Honoring and recognizing David T. Jones for his accomplishments and numerous contributions to the City of Philadelphia on the occasion of his departure from the Department of Behavioral Health and Intellectual disAbility Services, and congratulating him on his new position as Director of the Division of Substance Use Prevention and Recovery for the State of Illinois Department of Human Services.
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WHEREAS, David T. Jones is the Commissioner of Philadelphia’s Department of Behavioral Health and Intellectual disAbility Services (DBHIDS) - an integrated system that empowers a network of providers, partners, and community members to help create a Philadelphia where every resident can thrive. He has held this position since 2017; and
WHEREAS, Under Jones, DBHIDS prioritized increasing ease of access to treatment and removing the stigma associated with seeking treatment, resulting in a record number of Philadelphians receiving the life-saving treatment they need, and with growth exceeding 50,000 new participants in treatment from 2016-2018; and
WHEREAS, Jones ensured, amid the COVID-19 pandemic, that Philadelphians would continue to have life-saving access to behavioral-health treatment, intellectual disability services, and birth-to-three support; and
WHEREAS, Jones led DBHIDS to reimagine policy, improve infrastructure and business intelligence, and develop innovative services and programs to successfully meet the needs of the more than 1.5 million individuals that live in the City of Philadelphia and the 718,000 children, adults, and families eligible for Medicaid Services; and
WHEREAS, Jones oversaw the establishment of the DBHIDS Community Wellness Engagement Unit, a multilingual team designed to meet people most in need and to make sure they get access to the services the City has available to them; launched the Treatment Availability Database, which provides real-time information about available treatment capacity as well as a list of community medication assisted treatment programs; and established the 24-hour NET Access Point to offer on-demand treatment for people in addiction seeking help; and
WHEREAS, Jones worked with community stakeholders to expand access to medication assisted treatment, the crisis system, and the array of child and family services supports. He also partnered with the Philadelphia School District to develop new models, inclusive of the Support Team for Education Partnership and Intensive Behavioral Health Services, that were introduced to better meet the behavioral health treatment needs of students in their respective schools, homes, and communities; and
WHEREAS, Prior to his work at DBHIDS, Jones was Chief of Behavioral Health and Crisis Services for the Montgomery County (Md.) Department of Health and Human Services, where he administered a wide range of diverse programs addressing child and adult mental health, substance use disorder, crisis centers, victim assistance, and consumer services; and
WHEREAS, Jones holds a Master’s degree in Community School/Clinical Child Psychology from Southern Illinois University-Edwardsville; and
WHEREAS, Jones’ track record of progressive management experience has led to measurable results in improving the lives of children, adults, and families with behavioral health needs, and he has excelled in managing both urban and suburban public behavioral health systems that achieved outcomes inclusive of increasing access to care and expanding the range of services available to residents with behavioral health care needs; and
WHEREAS, In 2020, Jones was offered the position of Director of the Division of Substance Use Prevention and Recovery for the State of Illinois Department of Human Services, which works to provide a recovery-oriented system of care along the continuum of prevention, intervention, treatment, and recovery support in which individuals with SUD, those in recovery, and those at risk are treated with dignity, and where stigma, attitudes, discrimination, and other barriers to recovery are eliminated; now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED, BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF PHILADELPHIA, That it hereby honors and recognizes David T. Jones for his accomplishments and numerous contributions to the City of Philadelphia on the occasion of his departure from the Department of Behavioral Health and Intellectual disAbility Services, and congratulates him on his new position as Director of the Division of Substance Use Prevention and Recovery for the State of Illinois Department of Human Services.
FURTHER RESOLVED, That an Engrossed copy of this resolution be presented to David T. Jones as a sincere expression of the Philadelphia City Council’s gratitude and recognition.
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