The Justice Department asserts that dispatching police instead of mental health workers on routine calls involving people with mental health issues could constitute discrimination.
The Biden administration is weighing in on a federal class-action lawsuit that alleges New York City discriminates against people with mental illness by typically sending police — rather than mental health specialists — to respond to 911 calls where someone is reported to be having a mental health crisis.
The DOJ is responsible for enforcing the Americans with Disabilities Act, which the plaintiffs say New York City’s emergency response system is violating. The statement asserts the Justice Department's view — reflected in other recent court filings — that dispatching police instead of mental health workers on routine calls involving people with mental health issues could constitute a form of discrimination under that law.
The department said in a statement that reasonable modifications “may include dispatching a different type of response to an emergency call when necessary to avoid discrimination based on disability.”in a similar case pending in Washington, D.C. in February. The department has also worked with the U.S.
City Hall did not immediately respond on Monday to a request for comment on the DOJ's filing in the lawsuit.
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