The SUpport and Provide Psychiatric Outreach and Rehabilitative Treatment Act, or “SUPPORT Act,” Would Require Hospitals and Other Mental Health Facilities to Assign Care Management Team Before Defendant’s Release

“By addressing fundamental needs like access to a safe home and mental health care, we can improve public safety in our communities,” said District Attorney Bragg. “While New York has an extensive array of governmental and community-based service providers, individuals with the most deeply entrenched mental health issues often lack the trust in these systems to even try and access them. Meeting people where they are and building trust is the best way towards long-term solutions for these individuals and the communities in which they reside. The Bridge exemplifies what Neighborhood Navigators are all about: peers with lived experience meeting New Yorkers where they are and helping to lift them up, connecting them to the help they need. I know this investment in The Bridge is an investment in New Yorkers, their mental health, their safety, and their future.”

“The COVID-19 pandemic destabilized our communities in unprecedented ways and contributed to the profound mental health and substance use crisis gripping our city today. The $9 million mental health investment we are announcing today is rooted in an understanding that true and lasting public safety requires investment in our friends, family, and neighbors who are struggling to get the support they need. By investing in preventative efforts, we are making it clear that the criminal justice system must not be the main vehicle for addressing mental and behavioral health,” said District Attorney Bragg.