NYC Mental Health Pilot Program Creates More Space For Criminal Justice Change, News In Progress

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NYC sent non-police teams to respond to mental health calls for a month.

Data shows that more people got help and fewer were hospitalized.

Here’s what happened. https://t.co/GAvQ9B9nyd pic.twitter.com/9ohnEze6Hu
— Insider News (@InsiderNews) July 24, 2021

The B-HEARD program — which stands for Behavioral Health Emergency Assistance Response Division — launched in part of Harlem last month.

It sent teams of three unarmed, behavioral health specialists to respond to 911 calls.https://t.co/GAvQ9B9nyd
— Insider News (@InsiderNews) July 24, 2021

NYC piloted a program that sends behavioral health specialists to respond to mental health calls.
Early data shows these non-police teams were more successful at getting patients medical assistance.
The data also shows that these behavioral health teams turned to hospitals for treatment less often.

Between June 6 and July 7, 911 dispatchers rerouted about 25% of all mental health-related calls to B-HEARD teams, according to @MentalHealthNYC.https://t.co/GAvQ9B9nyd pic.twitter.com/SetfTt1pjS
— Insider News (@InsiderNews) July 24, 2021