N.Y. Mental Hygiene Law § 7.01: Declaration of policy

§ 7.01 Declaration of policy.

The state of New York and its local governments have a responsibility

for the prevention and early detection of mental illness and for the

comprehensively planned care, treatment and rehabilitation of their

mentally ill citizens.

Therefore, it shall be the policy of the state to conduct research and

to develop programs which further prevention and early detection of

mental illness; to develop a comprehensive, integrated system of

treatment and rehabilitative services for the mentally ill. Such a

system should include, whenever possible, the provision of necessary

treatment services to people in their home communities; it should assure

the adequacy and appropriateness of residential arrangements for people

in need of service; and it should rely upon improved programs of

institutional care only when necessary and appropriate. Further, such a

system should recognize the important therapeutic roles of all

disciplines which may contribute to the care or treatment of the

mentally ill, such as psychology, social work, psychiatric nursing,

special education and other disciplines in the field of mental illness,

as well as psychiatry and should establish accountability for

implementation of the policies of the state with regard to the care and

rehabilitation of the mentally ill.

To facilitate the implementation of these policies and to further

advance the interests of the mentally ill and their families, a new

autonomous agency to be known as the office of mental health has been

established by this article. The office and its commissioner shall plan

and work with local governments, voluntary agencies and all providers

and consumers of mental health services in order to develop an

effective, integrated, comprehensive system for the delivery of all

services to the mentally ill and to create financing procedures and

mechanisms to support such a system of services to ensure that mentally

ill persons in need of services receive appropriate care, treatment and

rehabilitation close to their families and communities. In carrying out

these responsibilities, the office and its commissioner shall make full

use of existing services in the community including those provided by

voluntary organizations.