Res. No. 736
Resolution calling upon the New York State Legislature to introduce and pass, and the Governor to sign, legislation to increase funding for Assertive Community Treatment teams.
By Council Members Cabán, Hanif, Schulman and Louis
Whereas, According to the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DOHMH), Assertive Community Treatment Teams (ACT Teams) provide mobile behavioral healthcare treatment to individuals with documented serious mental illness (SMI); and
Whereas, According to the New York State Office of Mental Health (OMH), by using a patient-centered “whole team” or multidisciplinary approach to recovery, ACT Teams provide services to individuals 18 years of age or older by providing care for them within their community, rather than placing these individuals in a more restrictive hospital setting; and
Whereas, According to OMH, ACT Team services may include mental health, substance use disorder and integrated dual disorder treatments, access to family education and peer supports, and vocational education services to assist individuals in negotiating a successful reintegration into the community; and
Whereas, In late November 2022, OMH reported that 65 ACT Teams in New York City were being operated by non-profit organizations who received state funding to employ psychiatrists, social workers, nurses, mental health and substance use professionals, and peer counselors; and
Whereas, According to DOHMH, participating non-profit organizations were allocated approximately $1 million in state funding to set up each ACT Team, with ACT Teams subsequently operating by billing Medicaid for the services they provided; and
Whereas, In November 2022, more than 1,000 New Yorkers were waitlisted for government-funded treatment placements, which included 800 individuals with SMI, who awaited treatment slots with an ACT Team for services that included 6 monthly check-ins with psychiatrists, nurses, social workers, and peer counselors; and
Whereas, According to DOHMH, anyone waitlisted for an ACT Team who did not already have care coordination was offered a referral for service; and
Whereas, According to the DOHMH Commissioner, to better meet the need for ACT Teams, at Fiscal Year (FY) 2024 adoption, the funding for ACT Teams was projected to be $15.8 million, reflecting an increase of $1 million from the FY 2023 Executive Plan; and
Whereas, DOHMH also reported that the number of ACT Teams had been increased from 65 to 75 Teams and reported a total of 5,168 people had been served in FY 2023; and
Whereas, Each of the current 75 ACT Teams can serve between 48 and 68 people at a time, with the initial cost projection needed by a non-profit to start up services for a new ACT Team being the same as it was in 2022, at approximately $1 million per team; and
Whereas, According to a January 2025 report by the New York City Comptroller, despite an “urgent need for care,” mismanagement and a lack of coordination among agencies have resulted in overburdened mental healthcare systems that are not equipped to handle the need for services in New York City; and
Whereas, According to advocates and policy experts, ACT Teams are currently under-resourced and unable to successfully meet the needs of New Yorkers as evidenced by ACT Teams’ staffing shortages that have resulted in clients being either turned away or waitlisted for treatment services; and
Whereas, According to OMH, when available, ACT Teams can provide round-the-clock services for individuals within their own communities thereby reducing the need for costlier in-patient stays; and
Whereas, By providing a person-centered approach that offers a diverse array of treatments based upon individual need, ACT Teams help people to become independent and experience recovery in a familiar neighborhood setting; now, therefore, be it
Resolved, That the Council of the City of New York calls upon the New York State Legislature to introduce and pass, and the Governor to sign, legislation to increase funding for Assertive Community Treatment teams.
LS 18063
2/6/25
CD