NYC Aims To Lower Drug Overdose Deaths 15% By 2025: Mayor

NEW YORK CITY — New York City needs more safe drug injection sites to hit a new goal of reducing fatal overdoses 15 percent by 2025, city officials said.

Mayor Eric Adams unveiled the goal Thursday as part of a sweeping three-prong mental health plan.

Under the plan, the city will commit $20 million toward family mental health, severe mental illness and overdose prevention programs, Adams said.

Overdoses hit a record high in the city during 2021 and are the leading cause of death among people experiencing homelessness, he said.

"This plan would expand proven harm reduction and treatment strategies with the goal of reducing overdose deaths in New York City by 15 percent by 2025 saving lives, dreams and families," he said.

The wider mental health plan is the second phase of an Adams-driven push on the issue.

Adams' first announcement in November drew controversy when he set a directive that people who appear severely mentally ill will be involuntarily taken off the street faster and committed for their own good.

Plans unveiled Thursday by Adams — which included a telehealth program for high-school age teens, pilot programs to prevent youth suicide and expanding "clubhouses" for people with severe mental health issues — are likely to be less contentious.

But many New Yorkers still harbor qualms about the city's overdose prevention centers, also known as safe injection sites.

The city became the first in the nation to officially launch two such sites. Since then, those sites in Harlem and Washington Heights have helped saved people from 700 overdoses, officials said.

The sites' future could well depend, however, on support from Gov. Kathy Hochul.

Adams acknowledged that expanding the number of overdose prevention centers requires "clarity" from the governor.

“The goal is to have the governor, her team, her staff see what we’re doing so that we can get the support that we need,” he said.

The overdose plan calls to expand access to the life-saving drug naloxone through vending machines and create a network of harm reduction hubs through hospital emergency departments and syringe service providers. But health Commissioner Ashwin Vasan said overdose prevention centers are critical in hitting the goal of reducing deaths by 15 percent.

"We must have more overdose prevention centers in order to reach that goal," he said.