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A New York City hotline established to advise police officers on Mayor Eric Adams' controversial directive to involuntarily hospitalize homeless people unable to meet their own basic needs reportedly has gotten zero calls since it first went live in January.
Politico reported that data provided by NYC Health + Hospitals, which operates the hotline, shows that no calls have been received since the hotline first became active on Jan. 31.
Adams, a Democrat, first announced his plan to "provide care for individuals suffering from untreated severe mental illness across NYC" in November.
According to the mayor's office, the directive, which falls in line with state law and court precedent, "clarifies that outreach workers, city-operated hospitals, and first responders have the legal authority to provide care to New Yorkers when severe mental illness prevents them from meeting their own basic human needs to the extent that they are a danger to themselves."
New York City Mayor Eric Adams speaks during a Manhattan news conference on May 17, 2023, in New York. Adams announced an initiative last November for police officers to involuntarily hospitalize mentally ill homeless people. (Barry Williams/New York Daily News/Tribune News Service via Getty Images)
"We'll be launching a hotline staffed by clinicians from our H + H hospitals that will provide guidance to police officers who encounter individuals in psychiatric crisis," Adams said during a press conference at City Hall on Nov. 29. "State law already authorizes a police officer to make a judgment call to have a person involuntarily removed to a hospital, but many officers feel uneasy using this authority when they have any doubt that the person in crisis meets the criteria. The hotline will allow an officer to describe what they are seeing to a clinical professional or even use video calling to get an expert opinion on what options may be available."
A spokesperson for City Hall told Politico that the hotline is optional for NYPD officers.
"This administration is doing everything it can to help those with serious mental illness who may be a danger to themselves and our efforts are showing positive results," the spokesperson said, according to Politico. "Over 90% of patrol, housing, and transit officers have received training to best support this population and the support line is just one additional tool for officers who may want to use it in the field. We are committed to help New Yorkers in need, and we will every resource available [sic] to do so."
A small group of homeless people at an encampment at the base of the Manhattan Bridge prepare to move their belongings just before an announced sweep by police and sanitation crews, Dec. 13, 2022, in New York City. A hotline for advising police on removing those with severe mental illness has not been used. (Andrew Lichtenstein/Corbis via Getty Images)
A representative for NYC Health + Hospitals told Politico the hotline is staffed by 30 trained psychiatrists, social workers and other medical professionals employed by Health + Hospitals.
The health system said it collaborated with the New York City Police Department to promote the hotline.
That included a flier made for NYPD precincts and an internal memo distributed to all officers, the representative said.
Police officers and sanitation crews force a small group of homeless at an encampment at the base of the Manhattan Bridge to move their belongings during a sweep, Dec. 13, 2022. A city directive calls to involuntarily hospitalize those who cannot meet their own basic needs. (Andrew Lichtenstein/Corbis via Getty Images)
In his November announcement, Adams remarked that he was "blown away" by the "lack of clarity" officers have when dealing with homeless people in the subway system and on the streets, remarking how the hotline would allow police to "get on the phone and call a clinician, being able to use FaceTime to say, ‘This is the condition I am dealing with.’"
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"It gives one the comfortability they need to carry out their function, and that's the goal that we want to carry out," Adams said.
Fox News Digital independently reached out to Adams' office and NYC Health + Hospitals Monday for comment on Politico's report.
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