Albany, NY — New York Gov. Kathy Hochul on Tuesday announced plans to add 1,000 inpatient psychiatric beds and create 3,500 residential units to fill gaps in the state mental health system.
“We have underinvested in mental health care for so long and allowed the situation to get so bad that it has also become a public safety crisis,” Hochul said in a prepared statement. “This proposal marks a monumental shift to ensure no one falls through the cracks and to finally and fully meet the mental health needs of all New Yorkers.”
The multi-year, more than $1 billion plan was announced during the Democratic governor’s annual state of the state address, which she is scheduled to deliver at 1 p.m. It would also increase insurance coverage for mental health services, expand outpatient services, and create greater accountability for hospital admissions and discharges.
The plan would direct state-licensed hospitals to reopen 850 inpatient psychiatric beds that had gone offline during the pandemic. The state would also create 150 new adult beds in state-run psychiatric hospitals, including 100 in New York City.
Hochul said the state will provide capital investment and working capital for 3,500 new housing units. This includes 1,500 supportive housing units for people with severe mental illness and 900 transitional units.
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