RyeCity REVIEW THE
October 8, 2021 | Vol. 9, Number 38 | www.ryecityreview.com
Westchester announces Project Alliance
Catch me
if you can! Owen Kovacs breaks loose for a 70-yard touchdown run against Harrison on Oct. 2, 2021. Rye topped the Huskies to extend its all-time series lead to 49-42-3. For story, see page 16.
Photo/ Mike Smith
AG delivers up to $18M to Westchester for opioid crisis New York Attorney General Letitia James continued her statewide “HealNY” tour of New York State with a stop in Westchester County on Tuesday, Oct. 5, where she announced that she will deliver up to $94 million for the Hudson Valley to combat the opioid epidemic. The funds come from different settlements James has negotiated following her March 2019 lawsuit against the various manufacturers and distributors responsible for the opioid crisis. James’ tour will make stops in dozens of New York counties throughout the month of October, with up to $1.5 billion in funds going to counties across New York state. “After more than two decades of having lethal opioids spread across every county of the Hudson Valley, today we are helping
this community heal by announcing we will be delivering up to $94 million to invest in opioid prevention, treatment, and recovery,” said James. “These funds will help the Hudson Valley turn the tide on the opioid crisis. While no amount of money will ever make up for all the lives lost, these funds will be vital in helping to prevent future deaths.” The lawsuit James filed in 2019 was, at the time, the nation’s most extensive lawsuit against the various manufacturers and distributors of opioids. These manufacturers and distributors were responsible for heavily marketing opioids to doctors, hospitals, health care systems, and others, which led to the over prescription of the drugs across New York and the rest of the nation over the last two decades. The manufactur-
ers named in James’ complaint included Purdue Pharma and its affiliates, as well as members of the Sackler Family (owners of Purdue) and trusts they control; Janssen Pharmaceuticals and its affiliates (including its parent company Johnson & Johnson); Mallinckrodt LLC and its affiliates; Endo Health Solutions and its affiliates; Teva Pharmaceuticals USA, Inc. and its affiliates; and Allergan Finance, LLC and its affiliates. The distributors named in the complaint were McKesson Corporation, Cardinal Health Inc., Amerisource Bergen Drug Corporation, and Rochester Drug Cooperative Inc. “I want to thank Attorney General Tish James for fighting to secure these funds. This year, the State Senate and State Assembly, working in partnership
with the attorney general, passed legislation to guarantee that these funds from opioid settlements are used for the development of new services and support,” said state Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins. “We can’t bring back the tragic losses experienced by too many families in Westchester and across New York state, but we can and will seek justice.” Last month, a settlement with Endo was announced that has already delivered $50 million to New York state and Nassau and Suffolk counties to combat the opioid crisis and remove the opioid manufacturer from New York’s ongoing opioid trial. Also, last month, a settlement that secured more than $4.5 OPIOID continued on page 7
In response to the Westchester County Police Reform & Reimagining Task Force report to the governor, the county is announcing Project Alliance. Project Alliance represents a fiveprong approach developed by Westchester County Executive George Latimer with the Department of Community Mental Health, Department of Public Safety, Department of Emergency Services and Department of Social Services to address the needs of Westchester County residents with behavioral health challenges. The five prongs: • 911 Dispatch Diversion Training • Enhanced training for EMT responding to behavioral health issues • Enhancement of countywide Behavioral Health Crisis Response Line • Crisis Intervention Team trainings • Mobile Crisis Response Teams (MCRT) “For nearly 20 years, the Department of Community Mental Health has partnered with law enforcement around Westchester to help address behavioral health emergencies when they arise, Department of Community Mental Health Commissioner Michael Orth said. “Through Project Alliance, our community members, law enforcement personnel and service providers will become safer and better connected.” Department of Emergency Services Commissioner Richard Wishnie added, “From the start this has been a collaborative effort and the results will be a better outcome for those who suffer from mental health issues.” 911 Dispatch Diversion Training Westchester County will provide training to all law enforcement agencies on 911 Diversion. This training is based on a model developed in Broome County/
Binghamton and creates a fourth option for emergency response, adding Behavioral Health to the existing police, fire and medical responses. This ongoing training is offered in two phases: (1) Offered to county dispatchers and (2) available to all law enforcement agencies in the county. There is no charge for the training. Enhanced Training for EMT on responding to behavioral health issues To enhance and expand training for EMTs and paramedics in responding to a mental health crisis, Wishnie and Orth developed a specialized crisis training to members of the EMS community. This training module will be ready for implementation late fall. Enhancement of countywide Behavioral Health Crisis Response Line The county has collaborated with St. Vincent’s Hospital to expand the existing Crisis Prevention and Response services to include support for 911-Diversion Behavioral Health Crisis phone services and to support the newly created National 988 Suicide Prevention Line. Service would be 24/7 for residents experiencing behavioral health crisis, concerned family members, other providers and law enforcement/911 dispatchers. Full implementation of the response line will occur by early 2022. It is believed that many of the crisis calls diverted to the crisis line will be successfully resolved without having to mobilize any resources to the scene. Crisis Intervention Team (CIT) trainings Westchester County has provided CIT training to law enforcement agencies in Westchester and neighboring departments for many years. Under Project Alliance, this police-based crisis ALLIANCE continued on page 4