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What you should know if you or a loved one is hospitalized/incarcerated
The fastest way to create a revolving door situation in psychiatric hospitals and related facilities is to release a client with no benefits, no housing and no community supports. This is why all clients on inpatient psychiatric units need a discharge plan. In New York State, not only should a discharge plan be done—it is the law. New York State Mental Hygiene Law (section 29.15) ensures that clients receive an appropriate discharge. What exactly is an appropriate discharge? Discharge planning helps people in need of mental health services receive treatment, housing, and other essential services upon discharge from the hospital. This is done through the creation and execution of a written service plan that addresses a person’s specific needs, including:
- Appropriate Housing (including supportive housing)

- Mental Health Treatment
- Prescriptions and Medication
- Substance Abuse Treatment
- Public Benefits, such as Public Assistance and Medicaid.
Access to discharge planning services is the right of every person who is admitted to an acute psychiatric ward. If you are currently admitted on an acute psychiatric ward you should be receiving these services. If you were homeless before your hospitalization or have become homeless due to your hospitalization, your discharge plan should include a provision for appropriate housing upon discharge. It is illegal for a hospital to discharge you to the street, a shelter, an unlicensed adult home or a licensed adult home that is currently in violation of department of health regulations.
The hospital’s obligation does not end with the actual discharge. Upon your discharge, the hospital is required to follow-up for 30 days in order to make sure that your needs are being met. This responsibility includes making sure that your housing is adequate and appropriate to meet your needs, verifying that you are receiving the services outlined in your plan, as well as providing additional services if needed.
The purpose of discharge planning is to ensure that clients have access to needed services upon discharge in order to prevent re-hospitalization. However, many mental health consumers are not in hospitals. They are in other institutions—jails and prisons. According to a 2006 Bureau of Justice Statistics report, the number of mentally ill inmates in U.S. prisons and jails has quadrupled over the past six years. It is estimated that more than a million inmates suffer from mental health problems. Up until a few years ago, Rikers Island released their former charges to Queens Plaza in the middle of the night, with a Metrocard and $1.50. This is a great disservice to everyone, and especially former inmates suffering from mental illness. In 1999, several plaintiffs filed suit against the city. The landmark case, Brad H. v. City of New York, ordered the city to provide discharge plans, similar to hospitals, for incarcerated individuals categorized as suffering from severe and persistent mental illness (SPMI).
Be sure to request a discharge plan if you find yourself or loved one hospitalized/incarcerated in the future. Usually hospitals and jails have social workers to plan the discharge; some have their own specific discharge planners. If you feel your rights are being violated, seek help from advocacy groups specializing in discharge planning such as the Urban Justice Center.
Knowing your rights is the key to self-empowerment. Enforcing your rights may mean the difference between a vicious cycle of dependence and autonomy.