LeadingAge NY President/CEO Testifies at Health Budget Hearing
The Legislature held its Joint Legislative Hearing on the State Fiscal Year (SFY) 2024-25 Health/Medicaid Budget today, Tues., Jan. 23rd. The Health hearing was the first of this year’s budget hearings and is still ongoing as of this writing. In attendance at the hearing were Senate Finance Committee Chair Liz Krueger, Senate Health Committee Chair Gustavo Rivera, Assembly Health Committee Chair Amy Paulin, and many members of the Senate and Assembly Health Committees. Senate Health Committee Ranker Patrick Gallivan and Assembly Health Committee Ranker Josh Jensen were also in attendance at the hearing and asked numerous questions of state agencies and stakeholders. Assembly Ways and Means Committee Chair Helene Weinstein was unfortunately not present at the hearing, and it was announced that she would be out for the next few weeks due to a necessary, but non-urgent, health procedure.
During the early hours of the hearing, the Legislature received testimony from the Commissioner of the NYS Department of Health (DOH), Dr. James V. McDonald; the Superintendent of the NYS Department of Financial Services (DFS), Adrienne Harris; and Medicaid Director Amir Bassiri. Following their testimony, the chairs and members of the Health Committees posed questions to the state agency leadership for several hours, inquiring about how the proposed Executive Budget would meet the health care needs of all New Yorkers and why certain funding cuts were being proposed while much of the health care world remains in crisis following the COVID-19 pandemic. A common phrase in the Commissioner’s testimony and response to questions was “stewardship” and the need to make extremely tough decisions in light of forecasted budget deficits and depleted federal financial assistance.
In the line of questions to both state agencies and subsequent stakeholders, it was not long before the need for better nursing home/long term care funding – and concerns about proposed cuts – was brought up. It was clear that many members of the Legislature shared concerns about the care needs of older adults, inadequate funding for long term care, and strains being felt as a result throughout the health care continuum. Further, it seemed that some legislators had been unaware of the magnitude of the cuts to long term care, and that the Vital Access Provider Assurance Program (VAPAP) was also at risk.
Assembly Members Paulin, Jensen, and Simon, along with Senators Rivera, Brouk, and Ashby, were among those who asked very specific questions about the impact of underfunding on not-for-profit operators, nursing home residents, and others seeking care, as well as what exactly the sector needs to ensure that the State better meets the needs of older adults.
LeadingAge NY President and CEO Jim Clyne was selected to offer in-person testimony at the hearing, testifying at approximately 3:45 p.m. on Panel D. LeadingAge NY also submitted written testimony to complement the three minutes allotted to speak.
If you missed today’s hearing and were not able to tune in, a clip of Clyne’s testimony and questions will be made available in this week’s Legislative Bulletin. An archived recording of the full hearing will also be available here.
Contact: Sarah Daly, sdaly@leadingageny.org