NEW YORK (1010 WINS) — Gov. Kathy Hochul on Thursday detailed her $1 billion budget plan for mental health needs.
"Our plan is to add 1,000 inpatient beds by funding 150 beds at state facilities and bring 850 psych beds back online in hospitals," she said.
Hochul spoke at the Montefiore Medical Center's Albert Einstein College of Medicine in the Bronx and praised the facility for keeping all of its beds open during the COVID crisis.
Dr. Ann Marie T. Sullivan, commissioner of the New York State Office of Mental Health, said that facilities that are behind the curve are being worked with "very closely" to get them "back online."
"If they don't, in the legislation, there can be fines that will be levied up to $2,000 per violation per day," Sullivan added.
In addition, Hochul is focusing on children in distress, noting that their visits to emergency rooms are way up.
"There's been a 40% increase in the last few years of teens reporting sadness and depression," she said.
That's why the governor's plan will fund school programs.
"$10 million to expand school-based mental health services across the state, and $10 million to strengthen suicide prevention programs for at-risk youth," she said.
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