New York - Today, New York City Mayor Zohran Kwame Mamdani announced the opening of the City's first Outposted Therapeutic Housing Unit at NYC Health + Hospitals/Bellevue - a major step towards the Mamdani Administration's commitment to closing Rikers Island.
The 104-bed unit will serve people in custody with complex medical needs by transferring the most clinically vulnerable detainees from Rikers Island into a therapeutic setting with closer access to specialty care. It is the first of three planned Outposted Therapeutic Housing Units across the city.
The Bellevue site represents a fundamental shift in how New York City delivers care to incarcerated people - moving away from a system defined by delays towards one rooted in dignity, access and prevention.
"Opening this new clinical facility at Bellevue Hospital is how we begin to close Rikers Island - not with promises, but with action," said Mayor Mamdani. "For too long, people with serious medical needs have been left to suffer in a system that was never designed to care for them. Today, we are building something different: a system that delivers real care, treats people with dignity and makes our city safer for everyone-incarcerated people, corrections officers and all New Yorkers."
"Today's announcement represents an important step forward on the journey to closing Rikers," said First Deputy Mayor Dean Fuleihan. "The Mamdani Administration is sending a clear message to New Yorkers that we will govern with compassion, transparency and a willingness to tackle our city's most complex issues"
"The Mamdani Administration takes its responsibility to protect the health and well being of every New Yorker seriously. Medical care has been difficult to access for those in the correctional system, particularly those at Rikers Island. That ends now," said Deputy Mayor for Health and Human Services Dr. Helen Arteaga. "Today, our city takes a monumental step toward righting historical wrongs by opening the first of three Outposted Therapeutic Housing Units that will treat more quickly and humanely individuals with the most acute medical conditions currently detained at Rikers. This is a reaffirmation of Mayor Mamdani's commitments to reimagine correctional care and provide healthy, dignified spaces to every person in New York City."
"When people come into our care, we must use every resource available to us to meet their individual needs with compassion, innovation, and effective support," said Department of Correction Commissioner Stanley Richards. "Providing high-quality healthcare is among the most essential services we can offer. While this facility may be small, its impact will extend far beyond its walls, helping to shape a new model of correctional care that will open new possibilities for the future."
"For over a decade, NYC Health + Hospitals has been proud to serve patients in the city's correctional settings, and today marks a new step forward in that care," said NYC Health + Hospitals President and CEO Mitchell Katz, MD. "The Outposted Therapeutic Housing Unit at NYC Health + Hospitals/Bellevue will make it easier for patients with serous medical conditions to access specialty care. This project has been years in the making, and I want to thank the many people who made it possible, including Senior Vice President for Correctional Health Services Dr. Patsy Yang and our colleagues at the NYC Department of Corrections."
"The opening of the Outposted Therapeutic Housing unit at Bellevue Hospital is a phenomenal achievement for New York City, as it marks another first in carceral care," said Senior Vice President for NYC Health + Hospitals/Correctional Health Services Dr. Patsy Yang. "We at CHS have long envisioned the Outposted units as a better way to care for our most medically involved patients. The units are another milestone in how we see and treat people in a more respectful and decent way. On behalf of our patients and of all those who care for and care about them, we thank Dr. Katz, Commissioner Stanley Richards, and Mayor Mamdani for making this vision a reality."
This unit is finally opening after years of delays, reflecting a renewed focus on delivering long-promised improvements to the City's correctional health system. It will serve patients with serious conditions such as cancer and congestive heart failure who do not require hospitalization but face heightened risks in a traditional jail setting.
Located on the Bellevue hospital campus, the unit provides direct access to a full range of specialty services, including oncology, cardiology and neurology. Correctional Health Services (CHS) clinicians will deliver care on-site, with enhanced monitoring and support in a therapeutic environment designed to improve health outcomes.
CHS will remain the primary provider of clinical care, working in close coordination with Bellevue specialists. The NYC Department of Correction (DOC) will provide security, custody management, programming and other services. The unit meets all standards set by the NYC Board of Correction and the New York State Commission of Correction.
The Mamdani Administration will also open additional Outposted Therapeutic Housing Units at NYC Health+ Hospitals/Woodhull and North Central Bronx (NCB), with 144 and 92 beds, respectively. Those sites will primarily serve CHS patients with significant mental health needs, further expanding access to care and advancing the City's plan to close Rikers Island for good.
