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COMMUNITY OP-ED MARCH 28, 2025 | The Indian Eye 14

Healthy Minds Equal a Healthy NYC

We will not allow our kids to fall into crisis and through the cracks of the system.

Through Teenspace — our free tele-mental health service — we have brought therapy

and mental health resources to young people across the five boroughs

ERIC ADAMS

e know that in order to make New York
City the best place to raise a family, we
Wneed to keep families and all New York-
ers healthy. That means ensuring New Yorkers have
access to the mental health care they need.
Every day we hear about mental health strug- The Partnership Assistance for Transit Homelessness (PATH) program brings together law enforcement
gles from parents, children, and older adults, and and trained clinicians and it is reaching more corners of our subway system to help people in need while keeping
we see it in front of us on our subways and on our
streets. In our State of the City address this year, we every subway rider safe (File photo)
made a commitment to address mental health con-
cerns across all five boroughs. And every day and the support they need, where and when they need it. ing more corners of our subway system to help peo-
everywhere, we are delivering on that promise. This We are also helping connect those with severe ple in need while keeping every subway rider safe.
week marks what we are calling “Mental Health mental illness to services. In this year’s State of the Since the beginning of PATH, the administration
Week” in New York City, where we are showing all City address, we announced a $650 million invest- has contacted over 10,800 unhoused New Yorkers
the ways our administration is investing in solutions ment to tackle severe mental illness and homeless- and delivered services to over 3,300 people.
to support New Yorkers’ mental health and give ness, which includes investments in Safe Haven We have seen the tragic consequences when se-
New Yorkers the resources to have thriving lives. beds, and runaway homeless youth beds — making vere mental illness on our streets and subways goes
Our schools are the first line of defense when it this the largest investment in street homelessness unchecked, and that is why we are fighting in Alba-
comes to mental health. That is why we are invest- in our city’s history. We know that too many New ny to pass our Supportive Interventions Act, so we
ing in mental health clinics in our public schools and Yorkers cycle between the hospital and homeless- can provide care to those who show signs of mental
making it easier for our young people to get help ness, so we are investing in “Bridge to Home,” a illness but cannot meet their basic needs.
and healing. We recently opened 16 new school- first-of-its-kind model that provides homeless New Mental health is personal for so many New
based mental health clinics, which offers individ- Yorkers suffering from severe mental illness with a Yorkers, including myself. I often talk about the feel-
ual, family, and group therapy, and which enable supportive facility to meet their treatment and tem- ings I felt as a police officer, the feelings I felt when
teachers to get the training they need to support porary housing needs. I lost my mother, the feelings I gelt when I was diag-
their students. These clinics — now in more than We have been clear: The city will not abandon nosed with diabetes and told I may lose my eyesight.
230 schools — open up a clear road ahead for our our homeless brothers and sisters to lives of suffering That is why I have made sure to maintain a healthy
teens, giving them a place to learn coping skills and and pain. Since the start of our administration, we routine that includes my mental health, through
resilience without financial burden on families. And have opened 1,400 Safe Haven and stabilization beds things like exercise, healthy eating, and meditation.
it gives them a place to share their problems and and doubled the number of street outreach teams. When we talk about health care, we must focus
concerns, as well as people to share them with. We are also taking preventive action to get our on the brain as much as the body because we know
We will not allow our kids to fall into crisis and vulnerable New Yorkers the care they need and pro- healthy minds equal a healthy New York City. That’s
through the cracks of the system. Through Teens- tect those who ride the subway. Since we launched why our administration is investing in the services
pace — our free tele-mental health service — we our Subway Safety Plan in February 2022, we have crucial to improving New Yorkers’ mental health.
have brought therapy and mental health resources connected over 8,000 New Yorkers to shelter, with Every day, we are delivering on our promise to
to young people across the five boroughs. And we over 2,800 now in permanent, affordable housing. make New York City healthier and ensuring that
have designated social media as a “public health And our Partnership Assistance for Transit Home- New Yorkers can access the care and support they
hazard,” becoming the first major American city to lessness (PATH) program, which brings together need to thrive.
take this step. We are getting families and our kids law enforcement and trained clinicians, are reach- Eric Adams is the Mayor of New York City, NY

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