To address mental health needs of Rikers inmates, NY should examine state shortage of psychiatric hospital beds

Mayor de Blasio announces mental health reforms at Rikers Island without acknowledging social impact of hospital closings

People with mental health needs end up in jails and prisons, overwhelming law enforcement Amongst the Rikers Island reforms announced Thursday by Mayor Bill de Blasio (D-New York City) was the allocation of $32.5 million to fund mental health and anti-violence efforts. The mayor cited as a cause of challenges at Rikers Island the large number of severely, mentally-ill inmates, who created problems that needed to be "dealt with at their root." However, public health advocates fault the state and city for allowing the closure of so many hospitals that used to treat people with mental health needs in a healthcare facility instead of allowing people with mental health needs get swept up in the city's dragnet of over-policing that then jails people with mental health needs at Rikers Island. “We stand ready to take legal action to compel long-overdue reforms at Rikers, if that becomes necessary to get the job done.” — U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara According to statistics reported in an investigation published last July by The New York Times, "Rikers now has about as many people with mental illnesses — roughly 4,000 of the 11,000 inmates — as all 24 psychiatric hospitals in New York State combined. They make up nearly 40 percent of the jail population, up from about 20 percent eight years ago." There is a shortage of public hospital beds for people with mental health needs, according to a study by the Treatment Advocacy Center. The study recommended that New York state would need to add over 4,300 hospital beds dedicated to people with psychiatric needs in order to meet minimum standards of care. In announcing reforms for Rikers Island, Mayor de Blasio never raised the issue of the lack of capacity to provide people with mental health needs minimum standards of care to prevent people with mental health needs from getting swept up in the city's dragnet of over-policing.

RELATED Mayor de Blasio promised to get to the root of unsafe conditions at Rikers Island, but he overlooks high social cost of hospital closings (Progress Queens)

Healthcare workers plan protest against healthcare and jobs cuts Wednesday on Staten Island

Nurses and caregivers will picket at Staten Island hospitals on Wednesday

RELATED Nurses and caregivers will picket at Staten Island hospitals on Wednesday (Staten Island Live) NY WFP, on the brink of doing the right thing, apparently folds to Cuomo (Daily Kos)

On Wednesday, healthcare workers are promising to protest healthcare and job cuts being imposed by the chief executive officers of various New York City-area healthcare corporations, according to a report in Staten Isalnd Live. STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- Thousands of nurses and caregivers -- including many at Staten Island University Hospital and Richmond University Medical Center -- will be holding protests for quality care and good jobs at over 100 facilities throughout the New York City area. The "informational picket lines" at hospitals, nursing homes, clinics and other facilities mark the launch of an effort to educate patients and the public about healthcare CEOs "who are severely threatening the quality of healthcare services and jobs for New Yorkers," said 1199 SEIU United Healthcare Workers East, which represents over 250,000 healthcare workers in New York State, and more than 400,000 total members throughout the East Coast, in a written statement. It's unknown what impact the protests and pickets will accomplish. Even as 1199 protests the job losses and healthcare cuts by healthcare CEO's, note that 1199 helped to strong-arm the Working Families Party to endorse the re-election campaign of Gov. Andrew Cuomo, whose very own Medicaid Redesign Team implimented large-scale healthcare cuts, including the outsourcing to Stephen Berger the effort to keep closing city hospitals that have resulted in still yet further healthcare union job losses, not including the negative impact to public health.

title="" target="_blank"

Bill de Blasio Hospital Closings Flyer

The wave of hospital closings continue into the de Blasio-Mark-Viverito administration from the Bloomberg-Quinn administration, because lying, cheating politicians, first promise to meet community demands to save our hospitals, but then turn out to fail to live up to their campaign promises.

2014-05-22 Bill de Blasio Hospital Closings Flyer by Connaissable

How can Bill de Blasio stand up to Gov. Andrew Cuomo on the hospital closing crisis ?

Healthcare activists question how Bill de Blasio will pressure #Gov1% to save hospitals if both stand at City Hall, holding hands in unity ?

— Stop Bill de Blasio (@StopdeBlasio) September 18, 2013

Only two months ago, mayoral candidate Bill de Blasio blasted Gov. Andrew Cuomo for not doing squat to save the community hospital closing crisis being brought about by Gov. Cuomo's political appointee, the Wall Street investment banker Stephen Berger. But now, Mr. de Blasio is holding hands with Gov. Cuomo in a show of "unity." Healthcare activists question how Mr. de Blasio will be able to pressure Gov. Cuomo to reverse course on hospital closings, if they how appear to have brokered political backroom deals to support each other in the election and reelection cycle ?