Mental Health Update

Two very powerful commentaries in today’s Albany Times Union. One from Michelle Jackson, head of the Human Services Council, making a strong argument why the behavioral health and human services sector needs a 7.8% increase in the budget. The other from Harvey Rosenthal, director of the Alliance for Rights and Recovery, on why we should have better options than involuntary commitment for mental health services.

What struck me about both pieces is that while Michelle does not mention involuntary commitment and Harvey does not mention 7.8%, there is a through line to both of these issues in their respective op-eds.

At the end of the day, it all boils down to making sure our workforce is paid a living wage and our programs have sufficient operational dollars to continue to run successfully.

If we had an operational incident review panel, we would likely find out that these horrific incidents in New York City were driven by a lack of appropriate staffing in our mental health and criminal justice system.  Changing Kendra’s Law is great debate fodder but does not get to the heart of the failures of our community system. We all know it is about a severely underfunded system.  If we continue to tweak existing law as we have for twenty-five years, nothing will really change. However, if we add funding to our workforce and our providers then we will see strong systemic changes.

Governor Hochul, to her credit, has recognized that “Mental Health is the Greatest Challenge of Our Time.”  She has added over a billion dollars to our mental health system.  She has also attacked the failure of our discharge planning system through regulatory change. She is also the first Governor to recognize the importance of funding our workforce. Yet despite her efforts, funding for essential mental health services has not kept pace with inflation during her time in office.

However, we believe it is wrong to focus on Kendra’s Law and Inpatient Commitment. We believe that if the focus of the Governor and the Legislature is on providing a 7.8% funding increase and a strong incident review panel then we could change our mental health ecosystem and create the real reforms necessary to impact lives in a positive way.

Opinion

Commentary: Pay a living wage to the people who make New York livable
Nonprofits are losing human-services workers because the workers can’t afford to work for such low pay. Give them a real cost-of-living adjustment, not just an “inflation adjustment.”
By Michelle Jackson March 31, 2025

New York is facing a crisis — not one marked by sudden catastrophe, but by the slow unraveling of its social safety net.

The state’s 800,000 human-services workers — day care providers who nurture our children, senior care aides who ensure our elders live with dignity, and mental health counselors who help New Yorkers every day — are being pushed to the breaking point.

These essential workers and organizations keep our communities running, yet Albany has neglected them for decades, leaving vital services underfunded and workers struggling to stay afloat.

Gov. Kathy Hochul’s executive budget proposal includes a mere 2.1% “inflation adjustment.” Given the rapid rise in living costs, that amounts to a pay cut in disguise. For the average human services worker in New York earning $35,000, that 2.1% raise adds just $22 per week before taxes. Meanwhile, the price of a dozen eggs has doubled and rent has climbed by double digits. Necessities are becoming luxuries, both for workers and for organizations that also have to keep up with rising costs.

Hochul’s response to this crisis? A shrug. Albany’s leaders appear content to watch as the very workers who kept New York alive during the pandemic sink deeper into financial insecurity.

Now is the time to make an investment in these essential workers, many of whom are women of color, and far too many of whom are now doing their jobs on empty stomachs and frayed nerves.

The Human Services Council, which represents 170 nonprofits across the state, isn’t looking to break the bank. We’re asking for a modest 7.8% cost-of-living adjustment – a figure that simply keeps pace with inflation. This is just 0.24% of the state budget, which amounts to a quarter of a penny on the dollar. Is this really too much to ask for the people who make New York livable?

Human-services providers are hemorrhaging staff because they can’t compete with private-sector wages. Who would choose to stay in a job where they work long hours, handle life-or-death situations and barely make enough to get by? Nonprofits have stretched their fundraising and bank accounts as far as possible to support workers, but the state needs to step up and pay what is just. Without a meaningful investment in programs and services, these jobs will become more unsustainable, and the workforce will continue to dwindle.

And when these workers leave, it’s not just their loss; it’s ours. Every New Yorker who relies on these essential services will feel the pain. The consequences will include fewer social workers to help children in foster care, fewer domestic violence counselors to support survivors, and fewer outreach coordinators to connect individuals with vital services. This will leave millions of New Yorkers without the support they desperately need, further deepening the crisis in communities across the state.

The governor has often spoken about achieving pay equity, supporting families and improving mental health care. But rhetoric alone won’t pay the bills for the human services workers who provide these very services. If she truly believes in these priorities, she must back them up with real investment. The budget is more than just numbers; it’s a statement of values. Right now, Hochul’s budget tells human services workers that they don’t matter.

There is still time to change course. New York should be a place that truly values the people who care for our neighbors, and it’s time we pay them accordingly.

Michelle Jackson is the executive director of the Human Services Council.
March 31, 2025
Michelle Jackson
https://www.timesunion.com/opinion/article/commentary-pay-living-wage-people-make-new-york-20244625.php

Commentary: We have better mental health options than involuntary treatment
New York doesn’t have to choose between improving public safety or protecting the rights of people with mental illnesses. By investing in community interventions, we can do both.
By Harvey Rosenthal March 31, 2025

New York policymakers and the public are being encouraged to believe that we have to choose between policies that either improve public safety or that protect the rights of people with mental illnesses. In fact, we can do both.

We all want to help stop the suffering of people in severe states of crisis. We all want to support them as they get off the streets and into safer homes and healthier lives. But we can do this without extending policies that deploy police to make what are termed “mental hygiene arrests” and initiate involuntary treatment.

Too often, these interventions send innocent people who lack adequate food, shelter and clothing on traumatizing trips to hospitals that don’t provide any of these, and that all too often send them out in no better shape than before. In New York City, a recent City Council report also showed they disproportionately impact communities of color.

Coercive confinements should be viewed as system failures, not as a solution, and the Legislature should reject Gov. Kathy Hochul’ s proposal to extend their use.

Fortunately, the governor’s budget proposal contains other solutions. It seeks to make critically important investments in programs that successfully engage people who have rejected more traditional approaches by addressing their most pressing needs:

• She wants to expand the Intensive Support Engagement Team (INSET) program, in which peers keep people involved in and working on their recovery.
• She proposed a “peer bridger” program to build trusting relationships and help people transition out of hospitals and into the community.
• She wants to invest in upstate “clubhouses,” family-styled support centers that offer hope and opportunities for friendships, support and employment.

Lawmakers should also pass Daniel’s Law, which would send mental health responders, rather than police, to assist people experiencing a mental health or substance abuse crisis, diverting people from needless police contacts and incarceration.

And they should invest in low-barrier “housing first” programs that accept folks who may not be fully stable or sober.

We’ve had several terrible incidents in New York involving people with mental illnesses causing or being victims of acts of violence. But we don’t know enough about these tragedies to know what might have prevented them: Was it a lack of services, coordination, accountability or oversight? Lawmakers should establish the use of incident review panels to determine what happened and what we can all do to prevent further tragedies.

All of these approaches are strongly supported by a broad coalition of advocacy groups that champion mental health, disability rights, independent living and criminal justice reform. These solutions also align with the findings of a recent Lake Partners survey that found that 56% of respondents preferred voluntary, community-based assistance, rather than coercive, hospital-based approaches.

We know what works: Rather than putting into law policies that will take us backwards, we can offer humanizing and accountable approaches that will keep everyone safe.

Harvey Rosenthal, a person in long-term mental health recovery, has served as CEO of the Alliance for Rights and Recovery since 1994.
March 31, 2025
Harvey Rosenthal
https://www.timesunion.com/opinion/article/better-mental-health-options-involuntary-treatment-20245699.php