Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
News
NYC launches cop hotline for mental health evaluations, forcible removals of homeless people
By
Chau Lam
Published Feb 6, 2023
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
Never miss a story
Email address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .
Stephanie Keith
By
Chau Lam
Published Feb 6, 2023
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
We rely on your support to make local news available to all
Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2026. Donate today
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
City officials launched a hotline to help NYPD officers decide whether someone should be forcibly removed from the streets, the subways and other public spaces and sent to a hospital for a psychiatric evaluation.
At a City Council hearing Monday, Jason Hansman, the deputy director of Mental Health Initiatives, Crisis Response and Community Capacity from the Mayor’s Office of Community Mental Health, said City Hall launched the hotline last week.
The clinician-staffed hotline, will “provide support and advise the police officers in real time” as officers consider how to respond to individuals with presumed mental health needs while on the job, Hansman said. The City Council convened the hearing on Mayor Eric Adams’ controversial plan for involuntary removals, even if a person does not appear to pose a threat to themselves or others.
The hotline creation comes about two months after the mayor unveiled this plan to address the city’s growing homelessness and mental health crisis.
The mayor empowered the police and first responders to take a person who appears to be mentally ill and cannot support their “basic human needs” to go to a hospital for an evaluation whether the person wants to or not.
Hansman did not say whether the 24/7 hotline is staffed by psychologists, psychiatrists, doctors, nurses or other health professionals.
He also did not say how many people have been forced to go into the hospital since Adams announced his plans in late November. A spokesperson for the mayor did not respond to a request for the information.
But Jamie Neckles, assistant commissioner of the Bureau of Mental Health for theDepartment of Health and Mental Hygiene, said during the hearing that the city’s mobile crisis team removed 42 individuals in December.
Neckles did not say how many of the 42 people were admitted after the city workers took them to the hospitals, telling the panel of councilmembers that she did not “have that information available.”
Tagged
Health and Science
new york city
housing
public safety
eric adams
Chau Lam
Chau Lam was a reporter at Gothamist.
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
MORE news
Marble Hill protester accused of attacking federal agent faces assault charge
Prosecutors say a Bronx man grabbed and ripped the clothing of a Homeland Security Investigations employee.
By
Samantha Max
Published Oct 21, 2026 at 12:53 p.m. ET
NYC’s subsidized childcare waitlist is moving, starting with 3K families
The city notified 3,000 families on the waitlist that they were eligible for a voucher.
By
Karen Yi
News
NYC’s subsidized childcare waitlist is moving, starting with 3K families
The city notified 3,000 families on the waitlist that they were eligible for a voucher.
By
Karen Yi
Elon Musk drops $500K on NY Rep. Mike Lawler's re-election bid
By
Jon Campbell
Early Addition: If you catch a mouse, there are meaner options than feeding it to a bird
By
James Ramsay
Brad Lander says he's released after Israeli forces detained him during olive harvest
By
Ryan Kost
Never miss a story
Catch up on the most important headlines with a roundup of essential NYC stories, delivered to your inbox daily.
Sign upEmail address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .