Governor Acts on LeadingAge NY Priority Legislation
On Fri., Nov. 14th, Governor Hochul acted upon seven bills that were passed by the Legislature and that LeadingAge NY has been tracking and advocating on. Each of the bills was generally supported by LeadingAge NY, but letters of support were sent on select bills deemed to be most relevant to members.
Unfortunately, one bill that we have supported for the last two years was once again vetoed by the Governor. The legislation (A.5587/S.4858) would have required the establishment of the Office of Hospice and Palliative Care Access and Quality within the Department of Health (DOH). While the bill was vetoed, it is important to note that last week, the Department formally announced the establishment of a “Center for Hospice and Palliative Care Access and Quality” during a provider association meeting. So, it appears that the goal of this legislation is being accomplished and directed by the Department, despite the veto action.
Please find below a report of the actions that were taken on seven LeadingAge NY priority bills last week. In addition to this list, LeadingAge NY is still waiting for 13 other priority bills to be delivered to the Governor for action.
Approved and Signed by Governor:
A.5520 (Kim)/S.5907 (Cleare) – Naturally Occurring Retirement Community (NORC) Supportive Service Program
- Approved by Governor on Nov. 17th; chapter amendment required
- Approval Memo 30
- Authorizes and directs the State Office for the Aging (SOFA) to conduct a study on the number of older adults residing in NORCs or Neighborhood NORCs who are suffering from social isolation and loneliness. Requires the Director of SOFA to submit the study findings to the Governor and Legislature.
- LeadingAge NY supports – Letter to Governor available here
A.2190 (Dinowitz)/S.5100 (Cleare) – Relates to the remote conduct of witnessing health care proxies
- Approved by Governor on Nov. 17th; chapter amendment required
- Approval Memo 22
- Provides for the remote witnessing of health care proxies utilizing audio-video technology or telephone.
- LeadingAge NY was tracking/monitoring
A.345-C (Burdick)/S.2330-B (Mayer) – Transparency of Long Term Care Insurance Policy Changes
- Approved by Governor on Nov. 17th; Chapter 655
- Requires long term care insurance providers to issue written notices, information, and policy provisions to prospective clients. Requires the Department of Financial Services (DFS) to publicly post any application for insurance premium rate increases.
- LeadingAge NY was tracking/monitoring
Vetoed by Governor:
A.5587 (Wallace)/S.4858 (Hinchey) – Office of Hospice and Palliative Care Access and Quality at DOH
- Vetoed by Governor on Nov. 17th
- Veto Message 54
- Establishes an Office of Hospice and Palliative Care Access and Quality within DOH to improve coordination and utilization of hospice in NYS.
- LeadingAge NY supports – Letter to Governor available here
A.1926-A (Gonzalez-Rojas)/S.1683-A (Hinchey) – Home Care Data Transparency
- Vetoed by Governor on Nov. 17th
- Veto Message 41
- Requires the Commissioner of Health to publish certain information relating to home care services usage on the Department’s website on an annual basis, including the number of individuals receiving care, those who have had permanent transfers, and aggregated service usage.
- LeadingAge NY supports – Letter to Governor available here
A.5119 (Gunther)/S.5178 (Brouk) – Aging in Place Task Force
- Vetoed by Governor on Nov. 17th
- Veto Message 80
- Establishes a temporary task force with the Office of Mental Health (OMH) to study aging in place in mental health housing.
- LeadingAge NY supports – Letter to Governor available here
A.6324 (Stirpe)/S.3004 (Cleare) – SOFA Office of Older Adult Workforce Development
- Vetoed by Governor on Nov. 17th
- Veto Message 73
- Requires the creation of an office to address the needs of older adult workers, including the creation of a centralized website with resources for older adults on job placement, career building, and job support.
- LeadingAge NY supports
Please reach out to Sarah Daly at sdaly@leadingageny.org with any questions about these bills or LeadingAge NY priority legislation.