Inter-Office Coordinating Council

The Inter-Office Coordinating Council (IOCC), is a collaborative entity created to improve continuity and coordination of services for people with multiple needs by the three mental hygiene state government agencies. It fosters integration and alignment of agency structures and functions to improve patient outcomes.

The IOCC is regulated under Chapter 294 of the Mental Hygiene Laws of 2007. 

• Mental Hygiene Law, Section 5.05(b) authorizing the creation of the Inter-office Coordinating Council
• 14 NYCRR 102 or Regulation Part 102 of the Mental Hygiene Law cities requirements for Directors of Community Services

Mental Hygiene Law, Section 5.05

Powers and duties of the head of the department 

(b) (1) The commissioners of the offices of mental health, mental retardation and developmental disabilities and alcoholism and substance abuse services shall constitute an inter-office coordinating council which, consistent with the autonomy of each office for matters within its jurisdiction, shall ensure that the state policy for the prevention, care, treatment and rehabilitation of mental illness, mental retardation and developmental disability, alcoholism, alcohol abuse, substance abuse, substance dependence, and chemical dependence is planned, developed and implemented comprehensively; that gaps in services to the multiply disabled are eliminated and that no person is denied treatment and services because he or she suffers from more than one disability; that procedures for the regulation of programs which offer care and treatment for more than one class of mentally disabled persons be coordinated between the offices having jurisdiction over such programs; and that research projects of the institutes, as identified in section 7.17 or 13.17 of this chapter are coordinated to maximize the success and cost effectiveness of such projects and to eliminate wasteful duplication.
 

(2) The inter-office coordinating council shall annually issue a report on its activities to the legislature on or before December thirty-first. Such annual report shall include, but not be limited to, the following information: proper treatment models and programs for persons with multiple disabilities and suggested improvements to such models and programs; research projects of the institutes and their coordination with each other; collaborations and joint initiatives undertaken by the offices of the department; consolidation of regulations of each of the offices of the department to reduce regulatory inconsistencies between the offices; inter-office or office activities related to workforce training and development; data on the prevalence, availability of resources and service utilization by persons with multiple disabilities; eligibility standards of each office of the department affecting clients suffering from multiple disabilities, and eligibility standards under which a client is determined to be an office's primary responsibility; agreements or arrangements on statewide, regional and local government levels addressing how determinations over client responsibility are made and client responsibility disputes are resolved; information on any specific cohort of clients with multiple disabilities for which substantial barriers in accessing or receiving appropriate care has been reported or is known to the inter-office coordinating council or the offices of the department; and coordination of planning, standards or services for persons with multiple disabilities between the inter-office coordinating council, the offices of the department and local governments in accordance with the local planning requirements set forth in article forty-one of this chapter.

Office of Addiction Services and Supports (OASAS)
Commissioner Chinazo Cunningham, MD, MS, FASAM
Contact: Jennifer Farrell
 

Office of Mental Health (OMH)
Commissioner Ann Marie T. Sullivan, MD
Contact: Patricia Bowes

Office for People with Developmental Disabilities (OPWDD)
Commissioner Kerri E. Neifeld
Contact: Gregory F. Roberts