Press Room

New York City Public Advocate Jumaane D. Williams today continued his call to address mental health needs and crises more holistically and by funding non-police alternatives in the city’s upcoming budget. He also emphasized the need for greater investments in city services for disabled New Yorkers. In testimony submitted to a hearing of the Committees on Health and on Mental Health, Disabilities, and Addiction, the Public Advocate outlined several programs and initiatives that need expanded city funding to best serve the community.

“New Yorkers have experienced an unprecedented crisis over the past two years, with many in our city experiencing heightened stress and trauma,” said Public Advocate Jumaane D. Williams in his testimony. "Many have become newly disabled by the effects of long COVID. Combined with the high numbers of people who already needed mental health resources and treatment and accessibility services prior to the pandemic, it is critically important to prioritize accessible, affordable services for people with mental health needs and disabilities."

The Public Advocate pointed to the need and opportunity to expand several successful city programs that serve New Yorkers struggling with mental illness. He cited the successes of Mobile Crisis Teams, which provide non-police alternatives for New Yorkers experiencing acute mental health crises; and NYC Well, which provides support to prevent those crises in the first place. He also argued for more Respite Care Centers, which “provide an alternative to hospitalization for those in crisis… Developing a new center in an area with high volumes of 911 calls would provide these critical services to those who need them.” In addition to expanding already successful programs, he argued the city should create a three digit number for individuals to call for non-police alternatives for a New Yorker in crisis.

When police do engage with individuals in a mental health crisis, he called for a prioritization of Support and Connection centers, which he said “provide police officers with alternatives to arrests and hospitalization for people with mental health needs who do not pose a risk to public safety ... When police interact with people in crisis or people for whom mental health needs appear to be the cause of unusual behavior, police can bring them to these 24-hour diversion centers to receive services, and they will not be arrested or booked."

These calls build on the Public Advocate's 2019 report on mental health crisis response, which centered non-police alternatives.

New Yorkers with disabilities have faced disproportionate obstacles throughout the pandemic, and so the Public Advocate called for expanding “programs like NYC: ATWORK, an employment program that recruits, pre-screens, and connects New Yorkers with disabilities to jobs and internships, and EmpoweredNYC, which provides free and confidential financial counseling for people with disabilities.” He also asked for additional resources for children who lost access to disability services while quarantined at home.

The Public Advocate's full testimony is below.

TESTIMONY OF PUBLIC ADVOCATE JUMAANE D. WILLIAMS

TO THE NEW YORK CITY COUNCIL HEALTH COMMITTEE JOINT WITH

COMMITTEE ON MENTAL HEALTH, DISABILITIES AND ADDICTION

MARCH 9, 2022

Good morning, 

My name is Jumaane D. Williams, and I am the Public Advocate for the City of New York. Thank you to Chair Linda Lee, Chair Lynn Schulman, and the members of the Committees on Health and on Mental Health, Disabilities, and Addiction for holding this hearing today.

New Yorkers have experienced an unprecedented crisis over the past two years, with many in our city experiencing heightened stress and trauma. Many have become newly disabled by the effects of long COVID. Combined with the high numbers of people who already needed mental health resources and treatment and accessibility services prior to the pandemic, it is critically important to prioritize accessible, affordable services for people with mental health needs and disabilities. 

I request that New York City invests in expanding its Mobile Crisis Teams and NYC Well, allocating $26 million for 18 new teams and a 50 percent increase in NYC Well resources. The city should also invest $7 million for two new Respite Care Centers. Respite Care Centers provide an alternative to hospitalization for those in crisis. Offering stays for up to one week in supportive settings that allow individuals to maintain their regular schedules and have guests visit while receiving services that resolve crisis situations. Currently there are only eight centers operating in the city. Developing a new center in an area with high volumes of 911 calls would provide these critical services to those who need them. The city should also fund a three-digit number that New Yorkers in crisis can call to receive emergency mental health services from trained non-police providers.

HealingNYC directs government efforts to address the opioid crisis and provide substance use treatment. I recommend $5 million to expand this program. Support and Connection centers provide police officers with alternatives to arrests and hospitalization for people with mental health needs who do not pose a risk to public safety. When police interact with people in crisis or people for whom mental health needs appear to be the cause of unusual behavior, police can bring them to these 24-hour diversion centers to receive services, and they will not be arrested or booked. The budget should include $20 million for four new Support and Connection Centers. 

These investments will expand resources and services for some of New York City’s most vulnerable, who need them now more than ever—for example, Mayor Adams and Governor Hochul recently announced their plan to remove people experiencing homelessness from the subways, many of whom will need to be connected with mental health and substance use treatment services in addition to housing. 

With this new budget, New York City has an opportunity to prioritize its disabled residents, who face numerous challenges at work, school, in the community, and on public transportation. The city should expand programs like NYC: ATWORK, an employment program that recruits, pre-screens, and connects New Yorkers with disabilities to jobs and internships, and EmpoweredNYC, which provides free and confidential financial counseling for people with disabilities.

School- and preschool-age children with disabilities and other health needs experienced significant disruptions to their services due to the pandemic, with many not receiving any services to which they were entitled for many months or even years. The budget must specifically address early intervention services for young children with disabilities and fund compensatory services so children can begin making up for the time they have lost.

It is imperative that our city’s new mayor and City Council make those with disabilities and mental health needs a priority. For too long these New Yorkers have been overlooked and underfunded. I hope that we can work together to ensure that the budget reflects our commitment to the most vulnerable in our city. 

Thank you.

"I want to thank New Yorkers for all that they have done to protect one another and limit the spread of COVID-19, allowing us to work to move forward. There will never be a perfect time to lift these policies, and the decisions will always be difficult, but the best course of action is to move gradually and guided by the science.

"Based on recent CDC guidelines, easing masking measures can make sense, provided other standards are met. As I have said, though, it is unnecessary and unwise to suddenly remove Key2NYC, especially while simultaneously lifting other protections and amid existing vaccine disparities across neighborhoods. Vaccine requirements are helping New Yorkers both be safe and feel safe as they patronize local businesses, and we should only move forward only in a way that ensures we don’t go backward. Lifting Key2NYC sends the wrong message at the wrong time.

"Finding a new normalcy will mean continuously monitoring the level of risk and impact of new policies. To that end, I am glad to see the mayor follow through on establishing a color-coded standard for COVID-19 risk and the corresponding safety measures. My office has advocated for this for several months, and the administration has previously signaled support.

"At the same time, I believe more clarity and transparency is still needed on the metrics used to reach these declarations. Right now, the CDC’s assessment places New York City counties at “medium” risk, not low. Additionally, the city’s new definition of “low” risk protocols includes masking in some spaces where vaccination status is unverified – seemingly at odds with the administration lifting protocols, especially around Key2NYC, today. Consistency of messaging and metrics is essential to giving New Yorkers the tools they need to protect themselves and one another, and rebuilding trust that government will not repeat the mistakes of the past."

"We know that the path forward in pandemic management requires risk assessment, and the gradual removal of some measures as we work to find a new normalcy that works for New Yorkers. The decisions to lift safety measures that have helped to protect New Yorkers amid new waves and new variants need to be guided by the science, not the calendar.

"Given my continued concerns about removing masking requirements in schools before properly assessing any increase in spread following the winter recess, I am relieved the mayor is taking time to account for this risk before following the governor in changing policy, and urge him to provide clarity, transparency, and clear communication on what standards determine a shift. It is also critical that any change comes alongside addressing problematic, pervasive issues with ventilation in schools. I have additional concerns related to the disparities in vaccination rates and school funding across different communities within our city, and the city must address these issues to ensure that all students in all neighborhoods are kept safe.

"It would be unnecessary and unwise to rapidly remove vaccine screening requirements in restaurants and other venues across the city simultaneously. Removing multiple layers of protection at once by eliminating mask and vaccine requirements now compounds the complications and risks, especially with existing vaccine discrepancies. It is important to assess the impacts of each new measure before rushing to the next.

"It is true that New Yorkers have stepped up and kept one another safe by getting vaccinated – at the same time, the Key2NYC screenings have had great benefit in limiting the spread of COVID in our city, and in helping New Yorkers feel safe and comfortable patronizing our businesses as we move forward in economic recovery. Moving away from these vital protections that helped us get to this point, too quickly, all at once, risks a repeat of some of the mistakes our city and state have made in the last two years.

"I urge New Yorkers to continue to do what we know works to protect one another, and New York’s executives to move forward only in a way that ensures we don’t end up going backward."

"One hundred and twenty-five years after our nation’s highest court upheld segregation, the first Black woman has been nominated to the Supreme Court. I congratulate Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson on her historic nomination, one which I hope will send a powerful message to young Black women across the nation, like my daughters, about what they can do, and what still has to be done. I also hope that as we continue to progress, we can go from groundbreaking ‘firsts’ to seconds, thirds, and new paradigms.

"In addition to the historic nature of her nomination, Judge Jackson is ideally suited for this moment and for the challenges facing our country and the court. On civil rights and racial justice; on protecting reproductive freedoms and workers rights; on combating gun violence and threats to our democracy; and so much more, the Supreme Court will be vital. It is critical that even with the realities of a conservative majority, we have jurists like Judge Jackson guiding the court and helping us to move forward with the gains we have made across decades, not recede from them.  

"Judge Jackson’s legal background also sets her apart and makes her a crucial voice – as a former federal public defender – the first in the court’s history – she understands and involves herself in the fight for the marginalized. She understands the justice system in its many structural injustices, and has worked unremittingly to improve it. I urge the Senate to move quickly to confirm her appointment, and look ahead to seeing her take her place on the Court and in our history."

"We are deeply concerned about the message that the mayor is sending by appointing leaders who have histories of disparaging the rights, and even the humanity, of LGBTQ New Yorkers and of working to criminalize abortion. LGBTQ immigrants in NYC need to know that they can turn to city agencies for help. Especially at this moment, people in New York City need to know that their city will wholeheartedly defend their right to reproductive health care.

"All New Yorkers need to know that their leaders view them as fully equal people and will work every day to protect their rights. Apologies and redress for past harm are important, as is meaningful, demonstrable growth. At the same time, it’s critically important that concerns about the people hired to serve our city are heard, acknowledged and meaningfully addressed, not dismissed.

"This is a city that holds dear the values of equality and dignity. Those are the values that we will hold this administration accountable to."

"I want to extend my prayers of condolence and comfort to the family of Eddie Kay, who passed away this week after over six decades of advocacy for working people as a union leader and organizer. His time with 1199 SEIU and TWU Local 100 was legendary, and he shaped policies and changed lives as his gruff voice spoke out tirelessly for worker justice.

"I was grateful to have had the opportunity to work personally with Eddie, to get to know him and his role as a giant in the labor community and in its history, and to have his support in my work. He was deeply dedicated to the fight for progressive, transformational change, and it was an honor to be in that fight alongside him. His legacy and model of leadership will long continue."