Page 10 - The Indian EYE 082925

COMMUNITY OP-ED AUGUST 29, 2025 | The Indian Eye 10

Quality of Life and Ending

the Culture of “Anything Goes”

In the name of public safety, public health, and the greater public interest, we must rally together to pass
the Compassionate Interventions Act. This piece of essential legislation will help those caught in the grip of
addiction recover, improve quality of life, and build a culture of compassion

ERIC ADAMS

very day, everywhere I go — whether it’s at a
town hall, on the streets, or when participat-
Eing in an interview — I hear about the qual-
ity-of-life issues that affect New Yorkers’ daily lives.
I am proud of the progress we have made bringing
down crime and violence over the last three and a
half years — and equally proud of our efforts to Over the next week, the administration will complete the deployment of the NYPD’s Quality of Life Teams — or “Q-Teams” — to
improve quality of life all across the five boroughs
because that is what New Yorkers see and feel every every precinct across New York City (File photo)
day in our city.
Over the next week, we will complete the de- Act.’ If passed, the Compassionate Interventions and a new ‘contingency management’ program at
ployment of the NYPD’s Quality of Life Teams — Act will allow clinical professionals like doctors, NYC Health + Hospitals that focuses on solutions
or “Q-Teams” — to every precinct across New York nurses, and others to send individuals to a hospi- to keep people in treatment. This program gives
City to address the everyday issues that degrade life tal for evaluation if they determine that a person’s people incentives for staying in treatment and not
in our city, including noise, parking, encampments, addiction makes them a danger to themselves or to using drugs, and it has achieved positive results in
public drug use, and more. We are also working to others. And it will allow a hospital doctor to seek other cities across the country and at U.S. Depart-
expand our response to these quality-of-life con- a court order to retain the person for treatment, if ment of Veterans’ Affairs facilities nationwide.
cerns with the “End the Culture of Anything Goes” they are unwilling to accept treatment on their own. The need to address public-safety and quali-
campaign. This is an expansion of the work we first pro- ty-of-life issues is at the core of what New Yorkers
Simply put, “End the Culture of Anything posed on severe mental illness three years ago, and rightfully expect from their city government, and
Goes” means New York City is doubling down it would be an important tool in helping to end the these are issues we have championed since the start
on our efforts to change the culture, laws, and in- drug addiction crisis we see all around us. Thir- of our administration. New Yorkers must be able to
vestments that improve quality of life and prevent ty-seven states already authorize involuntary com- go about their lives without having to court chaos
public disorder. While we have made great strides mitments for substance use disorder, and it is time and dodge disorder at every step. Most important-
in addressing subway safety, severe mental illness, to bring this option to New York. ly, we can no longer leave behind the New Yorkers
and chronic homelessness, we still see too many In the name of public safety, public health, and most in need. We must make the investments nec-
people struggling on our streets, often as a result the greater public interest, we must rally together essary to support outreach, harm reduction, wrap-
of drug addiction. From “The Hub” in the Bronx to pass the Compassionate Interventions Act. This around services, and housing — services that make
to Washington Square Park in Lower Manhattan, piece of essential legislation will help those caught lasting impacts in lives and communities.
public drug use is affecting quality of life and public in the grip of addiction recover, improve quality of It’s time to finally end the culture of “anything
safety for residents, visitors, and small businesses. life, and build a culture of compassion. goes” because when anything goes, nothing is possi-
A key part to finally ending the culture where In addition to legislation, we are looking to take ble. New Yorkers deserve more than that. We must
“anything goes” in our city requires Albany’s help. In more immediate actions as well, including through keep New York City the safest big city in America,
the upcoming legislative session, we are proposing a $27 million investment in outreach workers and the greatest city in the world, and the best place to
the New York state Legislature debates and passes treatment. Specifically, among other initiatives, this raise a family.
the ‘Compassionate Interventions Act,’ a follow-up funding would support a new drop-in space in “The
to our largely successful ‘Supportive Interventions Hub” in the Bronx to address the urgent needs there, Eric Adams is the Mayor of New York City, NY

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