New York State Announces Daniel’s Law Task Force Meeting

The Daniel's Law Task Force will conduct a meeting from 11 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. on Wednesday, July 24. The meeting will be streamed live and will provide an opportunity for task force members to begin synthesizing the information gathered since their inaugural meeting in August 2023.

NYSTEC, the consulting firm retained by the task force, will provide members with findings from their research to inform that conversation. Additional information about the meeting and the task force is available on its website.

Established in response to the death of 41-year-old Daniel Prude in 2020, the task force is charged with developing recommendations to guide behavioral health crisis response and explore avenues for related diversion services. Following its inaugural meeting last summer, the task force has hosted several stakeholder listening sessions and has continued gathering comments from participants.

Last month, the task force reviewed presentations from the New York City Mayor's Office of Community Mental Health, along with other city departments, including the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene and the New York City Fire Department. In May, the task force heard a presentation from the Gerstein Crisis Centre in Toronto that could be used in developing a crisis response system.

Additionally, the task force has conducted several virtual listening sessions, which have provided an opportunity for members to hear directly from New Yorkers about their views on enhancing behavioral health crisis responses. These sessions have also provided and to solicit the best practices for engaging individuals in crisis, with a specific emphasis on equity.

In-person listening sessions were conducted at the state University of New York at Stony Brook on Jan. 11, at the John Jay College of Criminal Justice in Manhattan on Jan. 18, and at the Central Library of Rochester and Monroe County on May 8. Virtual listening sessions were also conducted in November and April.

"The task force appreciates the tremendous input received from stakeholders across the state," Office of Mental Health Commissioner and task force Chair Dr. Ann Sullivan said. "Welook forward to working together to identify approaches that will best serve New York's communities."