BILL NUMBER: S9869
SPONSOR: BROUK
 
TITLE OF BILL:
An act in relation to establishing a task force to study aging in place
in mental health housing; and providing for the repeal of such
provisions upon expiration thereof
 
PURPOSE:
The purpose of this bill is to improve services for the elderly resi-
dents of mental health housing programs.
 
SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS:
This would establish a temporary task force with the office of mental
health (OMH) to evaluate and provide recommendations including but not
limited on the following issues: a) solutions for removing barriers to
ensure residents of community-based mental health housing programs can
successfully age in place while receiving adequate care; b) identify
policy, proce- dure, or regulatory changes that aim to remove barriers
to residents of community based mental health housing programs to
receive both mental health and medical care, including the ability to
hire health care professionals including but not limited to nurses
and/or health home aides; c) an action plan for making residences Ameri-
can Disability Act compliant; d) necessary training for residential
staff to understand the needs of the elderly for which they are provid-
ing care; and e) types of assistance to consider when transporting resi-
dents to medical appointments and ensure the proper follow-up occurs.
The task force shall consist of nine members as follows: two members
shall be appointed by the speaker of the assembly; two members shall be
appointed by the temporary president of the senate; one member shall be
appointed by the minority leader of the senate; one member shall be
appointed by the minority leader of the assembly; and three members
shall be appointed by the governor. The task force members shall be
appointed within 60 days after this act shall have become a law. Members
so appointed shall consist of: (i) at least one representative of a
statewide organization or advocacy group for residents of mental health
housing programs; (ii) at least one healthcare professional with exper-
tise in the needs of the elderly/aging residents of a congregate care
setting with significant medical issues; (iii) at least one mental
health professional with expertise in the needs of elderly mental health
housing residents with a severe and persistent mental illness; and (iv)
one member shall be a director of a mental health housing program.
The task force shall make a report of its findings, recommendations, and
any legislative or budgetary initiatives as it may deem necessary and
appropriate. Such report shall be provided to the governor and the
legislature no later than twelve months after this act shall have become
a law.
 
JUSTIFICATION:
More than 40,000 New Yorkers with severe mental illness reside in commu-
nity-based mental health housing. The mental health housing models
established 40 years ago no longer represent all the needs of the
current population. When created by New York State, their focus was to
assist residents in transitioning from a model that is congregate based
with 24 hours a day, 7 days a week staff and support, to a model that is
a single apartment with support services as needed. Today's residents
living in mental health housing are different from those who lived in
mental health housing when it was first created. Today's residents take
12-15 medications daily, as opposed to one or two; and many have multi-
ple co-occurring medical conditions in addition to mental illness and
substance use disorder; and many are living longer, which means they
need more medical care. More than forty percent of mental health hous-
ing residents are age 55 and over, with nearly a third of those age 65
and over. Combined, these residents are treated for 166 different
medical conditions, with the most prevalent being diabetes, hyperten-
sion, COPD, dementia, cancer, and mobility issues. More than three-quar-
ters of the housing is not equipped with the resources to provide care
for the medical needs of the residents. Moreover, most nursing homes
will not take residents who have severe mental illness, nor are such
facilities able to serve their mental health needs. With only 180 beds
designated as geriatric congregate residences, there is only a fraction
of the beds needed to serve this population. Further, despite the geria-
tric designation, currently there are no additional resources for the
care of these fragile, aging residents in the mental health housing
system. Therefore, with demographic changes within the mental health
housing community, this legislation seeks to be responsive to meeting
the increasingly complex health and mental health care needs of such
residents.
 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
S9041 of 2022. Veto Memo. 65.
S5178 of 2023. Veto memo. 80.
 
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS FOR STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENTS:
Undetermined.
 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately and shall be expired and deemed
repealed after the report required pursuant to subdivision five of this
section has been presented to the legislature.