New York Mental Hospitals To Close/Merge Under Consolidation Plan

Circle Connections: Policy & Regulatory Updates New York state's 24 mental hospitals will consolidate into 15 regional centers over three years, but layoffs are not expected, the state Office of Mental Health announced. Adult inpatient psychiatric centers in Binghamton and Elmira are set to close, starting in 2014, while a Rochester hospital will transform to a regional forensic facility, treating mentally ill people in the criminal justice system. Another forensic hospital in New Hampton, Orange County, will shut its doors, as will a children's facility in West Seneca, Erie County. Along with Rochester, regional centers will be established . . .