Gov. Kathy Hochul took aim at social media — the “silent killer” of New York’s youth — Tuesday as she rolled out her plan to tackle the scourge of untreated mental illness impacting public safety across the state.

The crackdown on social media companies was announced by Hochul during her 2024 State of the State speech, while she detailed the next stage of her separate, multi-year $1 billion mental health initiative.

“For decades, our mental health system was deprioritized and defunded. Make no mistake: this is the defining challenge of our time,” Hochul said. 

“Too often, the people involved in violent incidents on our streets and in our subways are victims themselves — victims of a system that has failed to provide them the treatment they need.”

Some of the initiatives announced for this year included adding 200 new psychiatric beds, on top of the 150-bed increase from last year, 15 of which will be dedicated to children and adolescents.

Hochul argued that addictive algorithms prioritize content that keeps young users on platforms longer, leading to negative impacts on kids’ development and mental health.

“Social media is a silent killer of our children’s generation,” she said. “We have to help the kids we’re hurting right now.”

Hochul expressed her support for two pieces of legislation, the “Stop Addictive Feeds Exploitation for Kids Act” and the “New York Child Data Protection Act,” which aim to crack down on kids being targeted by addictive feeds and on their personal information being collected and shared, respectively.

“We will continue to demand accountability from social media companies and will advance legislation to protect children’s privacy and regulate the algorithms that target them on social media feeds,” she vowed.

“Everyone in this room can agree, that healthy children are more likely to grow into healthy adults. But the tragic reality is too many people grew up without the support they needed and now pose a danger to themselves or others.”

As part of the mental health agenda for the state, Hochul also noted that troubled individuals who commit violent acts often “fall through the cracks” – particularly after being discharged from medical facilities.

In addition to adding to the number of psychiatric beds in the state, Hochul said she would expand mental health courts and oversight of screening for possibly dangerous patients — to tackle what she called the “defining challenge of our time.”

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Gov. Kathy Hochul has unveiled her 2024 policy agenda, which laid out a list of priorities, including the leadup to this year’s election season.

Top priorities mentioned in the agenda included a crackdown on shoplifting and illegal smoking shops, as well as a string of housing and education policies.

“Today, I’m going to just focus on a few key common-sense items for our agenda: fighting crime, fixing our mental health system, and protecting New Yorkers’ hard-earned money,” the governor said.

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Hochul is pushing for a New York State Police-led “smash and grab” unit to help decrease the spike in larceny incidents and retail thefts.

In the agenda, Hochul also called for a $1 billion commitment to improving mental health.

Other agendas included an elimination of co-pays for insulin on some insurance plans, funding for swimming pools and programs, and an advisory panel for artificial intelligence.

Many were quick to mention that the agenda did not mention any plans to tackle the migrant crisis in NYC.

In her address, Hochul hailed her “bold” initiatives, saying they would “make New York more affordable, more livable and safer.”

A dedicated team at the Office of Mental Health (OMH) will also be established to monitor data shared by law enforcement, prison, and hospital staff to facilitate connecting people to services, she said.

Hospitals will also need to screen patients with mental health conditions for risk of suicide, violence, and substance use before being released.

“Last year, we set a bold ambitious goal to invest $1 billion to transform the continuum of mental health care in New York and we’ll continue fighting for comprehensive reforms to our behavioral health system,” she said.

In 2023, Hochul’s policy plans addressed the gaps in hospital admission, created 3,500 new units of housing for people with mental illness and discharge planning processes, and expanded outpatient and community-based programs. 

Her address this year came as both Republicans and Democrats have placed increased attention on New York as a potential battleground state for the House of Representatives in November, adding a level of national importance to the governor’s agenda this year. 

For Hochul, the looming political dynamics could prove challenging as she moves to compromise with progressive statehouse Democrats while not exposing her party’s congressional candidates to attacks from conservatives.