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NYC Will Hospitalize Mentally Ill People Involuntarily


Mayor Eric Adams announced a major effort on Tuesday to remove people with severe, untreated mental illness from the streets and subways of the city, saying New York has an “obligation ethics” to address “a crisis we see all around us.”

Effort will involve involuntary hospitalizationeven if they do not pose an immediate risk of harm to others.

Mr Adams said: “The common misunderstanding persists that we cannot provide involuntary assistance unless the person is violent. “This myth must be extinguished. Going forward, we will do our best to support those suffering from mental illness and those whose illnesses are putting them at risk by preventing them from meeting basic human needs.”

The city said it would roll out immediate training for police officers, Emergency Medical Services personnel and other healthcare workers to “ensure compassionate care.” But the city new directive on policy acknowledges that “case precedent does not provide broad guidance on exclusion for mental health assessment based on brief interactions in the field.”

Oftentimes, homeless people with severe mental illness are taken to the hospital, only to be discharged a few days after their condition improves slightly. Mr. Adams said the city will direct hospitals to hold those patients until they are stable and only release them when there is a workable plan to connect them to continuity of care.

Hospitals often use the excuse of a lack of psychiatric beds to discharge patients, but the mayor says the city will make sure there are enough beds for those who need treatment. He noted that Governor Kathy Hochul had agreed to add 50 new psychiatric hospital beds. “We will find a bed for everyone,” Mr. Adams said.

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