CARES UP Provides $60,000 Grants to Veterans’ Organizations, First-Responder and Corrections Agencies To Implement Trauma and Mental Wellness Training
Awards Support Law Enforcement Officers, Firefighters, Emergency Medical Service Members, Correction Officers, Dispatchers and Military Veterans
Governor Kathy Hochul today announced the award of 18 grants to expand resiliency and suicide prevention efforts among military veterans and uniformed personnel, including law enforcement, firefighters, emergency medical service personnel, correction officers and emergency dispatchers. Administered through the New York Office of Mental Health’s Suicide Prevention Center of New York, the CARES UP initiative will provide $60,000 over two years to four law enforcement agencies; three fire departments; three EMS services; three emergency communications organizations; two corrections agencies and three organizations serving veterans.
“New York’s first responders and uniformed personnel routinely go above and beyond the call of duty, and often at great personal expense,” Governor Hochul said. “This funding will ensure these organizations and agencies are better equipped to cultivate resilience and mental wellness among their ranks to help properly address stress and trauma they encounter in the line of duty.”
In addition, the Office of Mental Health (OMH) also provided awards of $40,000 over two years to 11 organizations previously funded through CARES UP to sustain their mental health and wellness initiatives. These sustainability awards were made possible after Governor Hochul successfully increased funding for the program in the FY25 Enacted Budget to $3 million annually.
The CARES UP program provides organizations with $30,000 annually to increase suicide prevention efforts and wellness programming in their agencies. First responder agencies work closely with the Suicide Prevention Center to receive training from national subject matter experts on topics such as resiliency, mental health and wellness, suicide prevention and peer support and implement agency-specific actions to address their unique needs.
The initiative also provides these grants to support veterans’ organizations via Onward Ops. Recipient organizations use the funding to promote social welfare of service members transitioning back to their communities after their tour of duty ends.
Studies have shown the cumulative stress and trauma are common in uniformed personnel professions and have placed these individuals at greater risk of suicide. To better understand the mental health-related challenges facing individuals working in public safety fields, the New York State Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Services partnered with SUNY New Paltz’s Institute for Disaster Mental Health to complete a first responder needs assessment survey of more than 6,000 individuals in law enforcement, emergency medical services, fire services, emergency communications and emergency management from every region.
The assessment showed more than half of the participants experience high levels of stress, burnout, anxiety and depression related to their jobs, and that they may not seek help due to their fear of facing stigma. Thoughts of suicide were reported by 16 percent of respondents — a level four times higher than the general population of the state.
Likewise, New York veterans die by suicide at a rate nearly two times higher than civilians — a rate that has remained relatively unchanged since 2012. Veterans under the age of 55 consistently experience the highest rates of suicide in New York.
This year’s CARES UP recipients include:
Capital Region:
- Albany County Corrections*
- Albany City Police Department*
- Albany County Sheriff’s Office
- Clifton Park & Half Moon Emergency Corps*
- Colonie EMS*
- Veterans and Community Housing Coalition
- Watervliet Fire Department*
Central New York:
- Eastern Paramedics Inc.
- Onondaga County Department of Communication Services
Mid-Hudson:
- Clarkstown Police Department*
- Village of Mamaroneck Police Department*
- New Windsor Police Department
- Pleasant Valley Fire District
- Port Chester Police Department*
- Orange County Emergency Services Emergency Communications
- Orange County Emergency Services – Police Services Division
- Orange County Emergency Services - Fire Services Division
- City of Rye Fire Department
Long Island:
- Nassau County Sheriff’s Department
- Sayville American Legion Post 651
- Suffolk County Police Department
- Suffolk County Sheriff’s Department*
Mohawk Valley:
- Utica Center for Development Inc.
North Country:
- St. Lawrence County Correctional Facility
Southern Tier:
- Village of Liberty Police Department
- Sullivan County Division of Public Safety
Western New York:
- Allegany County Sheriff’s Department*
- City of Olean Fire Department*
- Town of West Seneca Police Department
* Denotes organizations receiving sustainability funding.
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