Relieve NYPD: Social Workers Will Pick Up Some 911 Calls

This will save police officers from having to respond to some of the calls in order to focus on more serious problems. The edition writes about it Fox News.

With the rise in violent crime throughout New York City, social workers will be assigned to call 911 hotlines. They will be in charge of mental health calls.

In situations where a weapon is used or the imminent risk of harm to someone, mental health teams will work with police officers to coordinate the response.

Mayor Bill de Blasio announced a new initiative covering two boroughs of New York. He says this will save police officers from having to react in most of these situations.

“One in five New Yorkers has mental health problems. Now, more than ever, we must do everything in our power to reach these people before the onset of the crisis, ”said de Blasio. "For the first time in our city's history, Health Crisis Response Teams will begin by default to come to the aid of someone in a crisis situation and will make sure those fighting mental illness get the help they need."

The move came after a series of police-related protests across the country. Some activists have called for a cut in police budgets and reallocation of resources in favor of more active community intervention in the event of nonviolent crime or requests for help.

De Blasio also backed a city council vote in July to cut the police budget by $ 1 billion and cut the city department's headcount by laying off about 2500 employees. At the same time, the Police Department abandoned the idea of ​​releasing a new class of officers from the Police Academy in the near future.

Currently, NYPD and FDNY emergency medical personnel answer nearly all emergency calls. This includes mental health challenges, regardless of the severity of the person's condition, the presence of a crime, or the risk of escalating violence.

However, the new program will send FDNY community and emergency medical workers for mental health emergencies to two “badly needed areas” - Site 25 in East Harlem and Site 47 in the North Bronx. ...

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The city authorities note that in 2019, the total number of calls to the 911 hotline from people with mental problems decreased by more than 8 thousand. This is the first decline since a decade in which the number of mental health calls increased every year and in every district of the city.

However, The City news channel reported that the number of 911 calls due to mental problems increased from 97 in 2009 to nearly 180 in 2019.

The program with outreach social workers will start in February 2021.

It will focus on reducing escalation in emergencies involving suicide attempts, drug addiction and serious mental illness, as well as physical health problems. At the same time, police officers will be much less likely to respond to calls related to mental disorders.

New York City police officers are also being trained in new methods of crisis response to behavioral health problems. More than 65% of NYPD officers have already completed this training.

In situations involving the use of weapons or imminent risk of harm, mental health teams will work with police officers to coordinate the response.

As a reminder, New York saw a spike in violent crime in 2020, with homicides rising 40% from 246 people killed in 2019 to 344 people killed in 2020 as of the end of September. Comparing the first 10 months of 2019 and 2020, the number of shootings increased by 91%, the number of burglaries by 42%, and the number of hate crimes decreased by 33%.