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'Last-resort' agency for older NYers faces lawmaker scrutiny after Gothamist reporting
By
David Brand
Published Apr 16, 2025
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David Brand / Gothamist
By
David Brand
Published Apr 16, 2025
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Local lawmakers are investigating why a New York City agency tasked with serving some of the most vulnerable residents has been rejecting a growing number of people referred to it for assistance.
As Gothamist revealed in November, Adult Protective Services — which arranges medical care, housing assistance and other support for people at risk of abuse, exploitation and eviction — rejected 4 of every 5 referrals in the fiscal year ending last June. Gothamist later reported the agency was helping fewer people despite an exponential increase in referrals over the past two years.
Now, the City Council’s aging committee plans to hold a hearing Wednesday on agency practices after committee Chair Crystal Hudson, a Brooklyn Democrat, said Gothamist’s findings were “extremely concerning” and inspired her to call the hearing, at which agency officials are expected to testify.
“We need to ensure that every older adult is being taken care of,” she said. “Adult Protective Services is usually an absolute last resort for folks.”
The rejection rate for referrals to Adult Protective Services has continued to rise in the current fiscal year, city data shows. From July to October 2024, the agency received nearly 1,700 more referrals than in the same span the previous year, while the number of people receiving aid decreased.
Hudson said she wants to learn how Adult Protective Services works with other agencies, like the city’s Department for the Aging, and how staffing levels are affecting its capacity to provide crucial services. The program had 427 staff members at the start of this year, an increase from the 352 employees working there at the end of June 2023, but still a far cry from the 469 people on its staff six years ago, according to data provided by the city’s Independent Budget Office.
A spokesperson for the Department of Social Services, which governs Adult Protective Services, said many people referred for assistance don't meet eligibility criteria set by the state, but that the agency is hiring additional staff to work with people accepted for services. The agency has so far received about 3,000 more referrals this year than last and is now serving about 90 more people per month, according to data shared with Gothamist.
The Department of Social Services has previously attributed the rise in referrals to an increase in residential evictions since a pandemic-era moratorium ended in 2022. City marshals are required to contact the city’s Department of Investigation, which then notifies Adult Protective Services, before evicting someone they consider elderly, disabled or otherwise “infirm.”
Attorneys and advocates for older adults and people with severe mental illness have said the surge in referrals reflects the city’s affordable housing crisis, in which many New Yorkers are struggling to make rent and afford essentials. Qualifying for the agency’s assistance is one of the few ways someone can receive a city housing voucher without having to enter a homeless shelter.
The city will likely soon have even more residents who need intensive support as its older population increases, Hudson said. The number of adults over 65 in New York City has risen by roughly 500,000 between 2000 and 2023, according to a report from the state comptroller’s office.
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David Brand
David is a reporter covering housing for Gothamist and WNYC. Got a tip? Email [email protected] or Signal 908-310-3960.
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