Imposes certain requirements on institutions housing a defendant due to mental disease or defect prior to the discharge of such defendant

• Democratic16
• Republican3

◆ The sponsor's argument

Why the sponsor says this is needed

Currently, all misdemeanor cases where the defendant is found unfit to proceed to trial due to mental disease or defect are dismissed as a function of law, and after as little as a few days up to several months of inpatient care, these individuals are released directly into the community without appropriately intensive, long-term post-release care, programming, or services. Notably, recently observed trends suggest that individuals who spend less time in post-dismissal care have a higher rate of recidivism than individuals with extended stays. As a result, individuals who have documented mental health concerns that can impact their own safety and that of the general public fall through the cracks in our system, and are left with access to few, if any, crit- ical resources after they are discharged. By mandating a referral to SPOA as part of their discharge plan, we increase the likelihood that individuals who are significantly affected by mental health concerns are connected with the resources that they need for long-term stability. Every county in New York State has established a SPOA process to connect referred individuals with the care management and services appropriate to support them. The treatment and programming one can access through SPOA includes, but is not limited to; Non-Medicaid Care Coordination (NMCC), Assertive Community Treatment (ACT), and Intensive Mobile Treat- ment (IMT). SPOA can also be helpful in assisting individuals with hous- ing referrals. In addition to a SPOA referral, Critical Time Intervention (CTI) care management teams offer significant value as a bridge to care during the transition from inpatient settings to community-based services. CTI teams help foster sustained engagement by building trust with individ- uals and supporting their participation in services accessed through SPOA, such as NMCC, ACT, or IMT. These teams remain involved over an extended period, promoting stability and helping individuals work toward greater independence. CTI and similar models should be prioritized where appropriate and expanded as resources allow. This legislation does not needlessly keep these vulnerable individuals in the criminal justice system, but rather ensures that each individ- ual's mental health needs are carefully considered and addressed at the time of their discharge and during their return to the community. It also will help generate meaningful data on how consistently referrals and follow-through are happening across hospitals and agencies to aid future reforms to the State's discharge protocols

This is the sponsor's own case for the bill, quoted from their memorandum. It is not Agora's description of what the bill does.