Mayor Eric Adams announced significant expansions to NYC Health + Hospitals’ medical respite bed program Tuesday, which offers patients experiencing homelessness a place to stay for up to 90 days after a major health event.
Adams was joined by NYC Health + Hospitals CEO Dr. Mitchell Katz to announce the expansion to the medical respite bed program, with 24 beds added to the service, anticipated to serve 100 patients per year.
Adams said the expansion of the medical respite program will help ensure that homeless individuals are given a safe place to heal while also being connected to housing resources.
“This program is at the intersection of our administration’s most powerful work — ensuring New Yorkers are safe, healthy, and on a pathway to stable and affordable housing,” Adams said in a statement.
The program, which now features 75 medical respite beds, has served more than 1,400 patients through the end of 2024 since it was first launched in 2011. The service allows patients who have been discharged from hospital to receive continued care in medical wellness facilities that they would not typically receive in shelters, including wound care, wellness checks and physical therapy.
Patients will also receive medically-tailored meals, medication monitoring and coordination of and transportation to medical appointments
During their stay in medical respite facilities, homeless individuals will also receive intensive housing case management to help them identify future housing options, with almost 360 patients discharged from respite into stable housing since the program was launched.
Human service non-profit Institute for Community Living (ICL) operates 50 medical respite beds, while home health care non-profit Comunilife operates the remaining 25 beds.
Katz said medical respite is an “incredibly useful tool” to provide care for patients who are ready to be discharged from hospital but still require additional support that they can’t receive in a homeless shelter.
“We can safely discharge these patients knowing they have somewhere safe to heal and recover, where their medical and behavioral health needs will be taken care of. This program has a powerful impact on our patients’ lives and their health,” Katz said in a statement.
NYC Health + Hospitals stated that studies have shown that patients discharged from hospitals to respite have better health outcomes compared to those discharged to shelters directly.
Officials representing the health care system further argued that by offering a place to recuperate with access to medical services, the respite program shortens patients’ hospital stays, frees up acute care beds for patients with critical needs and offers a more supportive setting for patients to recover in their communities.
The expansion of the medical respite program is part of Adams’ housing plan, “Housing Our Neighbors: A Blueprint for Housing and Homelessness,” and NYC Health + Hospitals’ Housing for Health initiative to connect patients experiencing homelessness to stable, affordable housing.
ICL President and CEO Jody Rudin said the institute is proud to partner with NYC Health + Hospitals for the expansion, stating that stable housing is critical to positive health outcomes.
“The expansion of medical respite means that more New Yorkers experiencing homelessness have a safe place to heal while receiving the care they need,” Rudin said in a statement.
NYC Health + Hospitals Assistant Vice President of Housing and Real Estate Leora Jontef said the expansion will allow the Housing for Health initiative to better meet the high demand for medical respite.
“We’ve seen just how valuable respite can be in a patient’s care, connecting them to needed clinical services and discharging to permanent housing whenever possible. We’re grateful to have partners like ICL to help make this expansion happen,” Jontef said.
