# New York State Office of Mental Health

The Office of Mental Health (OMH) is an agency of the New York state government responsible for assuring the development of comprehensive plans, programs, and services in the areas of research, prevention, and care, treatment, rehabilitation, education, and training of the mentally ill. It is part of the pro forma Department of Mental Hygiene along with the Office of Addiction Services and Supports (OASAS) and Office for People With Developmental Disabilities (OPWDD).

## Public mental health system

The majority of the public mental health system is in voluntary outpatient programs, the largest and most used being clinic treatment services. Inpatient care is provided mainly by homeless shelters, supplemented by the general hospital network, jails, and state psychiatric centers. 45–57% of New York mental health consumers use Medicaid, which is the largest single source of funding.

## Operations

OMH regulates and licenses private mental health services, such private psychiatric centers, clinics, and treatment facilities, including those in hospitals and schools. OMH also regulates residential treatment facilities for children and youth operated by nonprofit corporations. Programs include inpatient, outpatient, partial hospitalization, day care, emergency, and rehabilitative treatments and services. The Statewide Health Information Network for New York (SHIN-NY, pronounced "shiny") is a health information exchange that allows healthcare providers to access and share patient data, including several regional health information organizations such as Hixny.

## Safety and security

New York State OMH Safety and Security Officers maintain Peace Officer status which grants them limited authority under the Mental Hygiene Law (section 7.25), Public Health Law (section 455) and the Criminal Procedure Law (section 2.10–12). The New York State OPWDD is responsible for providing onsite security services. They are prohibited by New York State Law and (OMH) policy to use or carry a firearm, but do carry a expandable baton, handcuffs, mace, bulletproof vests, flashlight, and a radio that is directly linked to other officers and the main office of the facility. The Civil Service title used by the New York State Department of Civil Service for OMH is "Safety and Security Officer".

## Workforce development

Many essential workers are still earning far below a living wage even after the COVID-19 pandemic. OMH provides funding for eligible workforce development initiatives of licensed providers. Funding comes from federal Community Mental Health Services Block Grants and the enhanced Federal Medical Assistance Percentages program, more recently from e.g. the CRRSAA and American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (COVID-19 stimuli packages), for targeted rate increases and recruitment and retention funds. The state FY 2024 budget also included funding for cost-of-living adjustments and expanded loan forgiveness for social workers and technicians. The NYS Department of Labor oversees the operation of local WIOA career centers (one-stop centers, American job centers) that offer a range of employment and training services, including job search assistance, career counseling, and access to job training programs.

## Administration

The New York State Incident Management and Reporting System (NIMRS) is used by providers for reportable incidents, and the Justice Center for the Protection of People with Special Needs has the responsibility to track, prevent, investigate, and prosecute reports of abuse and neglect of vulnerable persons. The state Mental Hygiene Legal Service (MHLS) provides legal representation, advice, and assistance to mentally disabled persons under the care or jurisdiction of state-operated or licensed facilities concerning their admission, retention, care, or treatment. The Behavioral Health Services Advisory Council (BHSAC) advises OMH by reviewing, monitoring, and evaluating the adequacy and delivery of services. In the State Legislature, the Senate Mental Health and Assembly Mental Health standing committees conduct legislative oversight, budget advocacy, and otherwise report bills on the services, care, treatment, and advocacy for individuals with various disabilities, while the Senate Health and Assembly Health standing committees focus on healthcare facilities operations and services delivery more generally.

## History

In 1836–1843 the Utica State Hospital was established, and in 1865–1869 the Willard State Hospital was established to relieve Utica of the incurably insane and relieve the almshouses of mentally ill paupers. Throughout the late 18th and most of the 19th centuries, families and county almshouses provided care to the mentally disabled, but in 1890 the State Care Act made the state responsible for the pauper insane. In 1909 the Insanity Law was consolidated in chapter 27 of the Consolidated Laws of New York.
The Department of Mental Hygiene was established in 1926–1927 as part of a restructuring of the New York state government, and was given responsibility for people diagnosed with mental retardation, mental illness or epilepsy. Dr. Frederick W. Parsons was appointed the first department commissioner in January, 1927. He was replaced by Dr. William J. Tiffany in 1937, who then resigned in 1943 over an investigation into handling of an outbreak of amoebic dysentery at Creedmoor State Hospital. By 1950, the department had grown into the largest agency of the New York state government, with more than 24,000 employees and an operating cost exceeding a third of the state budget. The state acceded to the Interstate Compact on Mental Health in 1956. In 1972 the Mental Hygiene Law was revised and reenacted.
In 1978, the Department of Mental Hygiene was reorganized into the autonomous Office of Mental Health (OMH), Office of Alcoholism and Substance Abuse, and the Office of Mental Retardation and Developmental Disabilities. These three offices are headed up by a commissioner who also serves on a council that performs inter-office coordination. In 2012, the Protection of People with Special Needs Act (PPSNA) established the Justice Center for the Protection of People with Special Needs to create uniform safeguards for people with special needs served in residential facilities and day programs by provider agencies that are operated, licensed, or certified by a multitude of state agencies, including the OMH, OASAS, and OPWDD.

## List of hospitals

The public hospitals in the department are listed below, though there are many other private facilities; the New York State Psychiatric Institute and Nathan Kline Institute for Psychiatric Research are medical research institutes.
| Hospital | County | Region |
| Greater Binghamton Health Center | Broome | Southern Tier |
| Bronx Psychiatric Center | Bronx | New York City |
| Buffalo Psychiatric Center | Erie | Western New York |
| Capital District Psychiatric Center | Albany | Capital District |
| Central New York Psychiatric Center | Oneida | Mohawk Valley |
| Creedmoor Psychiatric Center | Queens | New York City |
| Elmira Psychiatric Center | Chemung | Southern Tier |
| Kingsboro Psychiatric Center | Kings | New York City |
| Kirby Forensic Psychiatric Center | New York | New York City |
| Manhattan Psychiatric Center | New York | New York City |
| Mid-Hudson Forensic Psychiatric Center | Orange | Mohawk Valley |
| Mohawk Valley Psychiatric Center | Oneida | Mohawk Valley |
| Nathan S. Kline Institute for Psychiatric Research | Rockland | Hudson Valley |
| New York State Psychiatric Institute | New York | New York City |
| Pilgrim Psychiatric Center | Suffolk | Long Island |
| Richard H. Hutchings Psychiatric Center | Onondaga | Central New York |
| Rochester Psychiatric Center | Monroe | Finger Lakes |
| Rockland Psychiatric Center | Rockland | Hudson Valley |
| St. Lawrence Psychiatric Center | St. Lawrence | North Country |
| South Beach Psychiatric Center | Richmond | New York City |
| New York City Children's Center | | New York City |
| Rockland Children's Psychiatric Center | Rockland | Hudson Valley |
| Sagamore Children's Psychiatric Center | Suffolk | Long Island |
| Western New York Children's Psychiatric Center | Erie | Western New York |

## List of commissioners

DMH
* 1927–1937, Frederick W. Parsons
* 1937–1943, William J. Tiffany
* 1943–1950, Frederick MacCurdy
* 1950–1954, Newton Bigelow
* 1955–1964, Paul H. Hoch
* 1966–1974, Alan D. Miller
* 1975–1978, Lawrence C. Kolb
OMH
* 1978, James A. Prevost
* 1983, Stephen Katz
* 1988, Richard C. Surles
* 1995, James Stone
* 2007, Michael Hogan
* 2014, Ann Marie T. Sullivan