End of Session Countdown Begins, HCR Commissioner Addresses Senate Housing Committee, and Business Regulation Council to Accept Comments and Recommendations Online
The End of Session Countdown Begins…
The Legislative Session is scheduled to end on Thurs., June 16th, leaving only 12 session days for lawmakers to introduce and debate high priority legislation, and for advocates to advance and inform legislators of their priority legislation. During these last few days of session, we urge you to connect with your lawmakers on the issues outlined below. For your convenience, we have pre-written letters available online for you to send to your lawmakers, as well as a “Find My Legislators” tool, that will provide you with your lawmakers' contact information. If you have any questions or concerns about LeadingAge NY’s remaining legislative priorities, please don’t hesitate to contact your government relations team.
Attention Nursing Home Providers! - The Fight Continues Against Nurse Staffing Ratios
There are now 101 Assembly members and 31 Senators that have signed onto the legislation imposing nurse staffing ratios on hospitals and nursing homes. Sadly, very few of these lawmakers realize that the bill includes nursing homes. Please help us educate your lawmakers. Call them, write them or meet with them (or do all three!) and let them know how this bill will impact you.
Known as the Safe Staffing for Quality Care Act, this legislation would create specific staffing ratios for nurses and other direct-care staff in hospitals and nursing homes. LeadingAge NY opposes the legislation, which if enacted, would cost an estimated $1.06B to implement in nursing homes and would require more than an hour of additional staff time per resident per day when compared to current staffing. You can estimate the cost of this mandate on your nursing home by utilizing our cost estimator template.
You can quickly access our campaign page by texting RATIOS to 52886
Attention ACF/AL providers: We are continuing to work to get legislation introduced that would allow a nurse to work within his/her full scope of practice in assisted living facilities. We need your help to get a bill introduced by the end of the session so we can build our grassroots advocacy effort. Please call or email your lawmaker and ask them to support this important initiative.
· Role of the Nurse in the ACF: Many adult care facilities in the state currently employ nurses, but their residents are not able to fully benefit given restrictions on the duties the nurses can perform. Currently, these professionals are permitted to provide nursing services only to residents of Enhanced Assisted Living Residences (EALRs). This limitation prevents nurses from providing services that would result in better health outcomes for the resident and support end of life care. You can let your lawmakers know how important this legislation is by visiting our campaign here.
Attention Housing Providers! LeadingAge NY and other housing advocates were in Albany on Wed. to urge lawmakers to sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) detailing how the $2B allocated for affordable housing in the state budget will be spent. Also, LeadingAge NY met with the Assembly to discuss past legislation we had developed clarifying the rights of residents in senior housing to access home care and other senior services, just as they would in their own home. The Assembly sponsor is eager to advance the bill. You can support our efforts by contacting your representatives.
· MOU to Allocate Housing Funding: Nearly $2B was approved in the recently adopted state budget for affordable housing programs over the next five years. Now the race is on to get the MOU signed before legislators leave Albany in mid-June and ensure that it includes a specific program for senior housing. There is no deadline for the MOU, but once legislators leave Albany, an agreement will become a lot more difficult. You can advocate on this issue by visiting our MOU to Support Senior Housing campaign and contacting your lawmakers TODAY.
· Independent Senior Housing Resident Freedom of Choice Act: (A.102343 (Cymbrowitz)/S.2276-A (Young)) would clarify that individuals living in senior housing have the right to access and obtain the same services that they would if they were an individual residing in the community, from the provider of their choosing. These services include personal care, home care, case management, technologies and other community services that support them to live independently in the community. Read our memo of support and click here to support our campaign and contact your lawmakers today.
Attention CCRC members – CCRC Revitalization Act has been introduced: LeadingAge NY’s draft legislation to modernize the CCRC statute and eliminate barriers to the development, expansion, and efficient operation of Continuing Care Retirement Communities (CCRCs) in New York State has now been introduced as S.7778 (Hannon). Now is the time to reach out to your legislative representatives to ask them to sign onto the bill as a co-sponsor. Find your legislators contact information with our “Find My Legislators” tool and visit our campaign. View our full memo of support here.
Advanced Home Health Aides: The Assembly has passed A.7188 (Glick), legislation providing an exemption to the Nurse Practice Act to establish a program for "advanced home health aides" who would be authorized to perform advanced tasks, including the administration of medications, under the direct supervision of a registered professional nurse. The bill does not have a Senate sponsor at this time so may not progress any further this session. LeadingAge NY strongly supports authorizing advanced home health aides and is continuing to advocate for such a program, but is concerned about the unrealistic staffing ratios included in this bill.
HCR Commissioner Addresses Senate Housing Committee
On Wed., New York State Homes and Community Renewal, James Rubin spoke to the members of the Senate Housing Committee, saying that he has overhauled much of the senior leadership and tried to make the agency more "user-friendly". He noted the agency has had two "record-breaking" years of getting funds out to those who needed it. He added that work in the April-June pipeline for upstate New York had grown since last year.
Commissioner Rubin noted that upstate housing and general affordable housing often required greater attention than downstate housing. He added that his agency is often times the only source of funding in upstate New York. Additionally, Rubin voiced his optimism about getting his agency's needs met from the state legislature.
Business Regulation Council to Accept Comments and Recommendations Online
The Governor and legislative leaders announced their appointments to the Business Regulation Council, which is charged with conducting a comprehensive review of New York State’s business climate and making recommendations on additional ways to decrease the cost of doing business in the state while not compromising protections in place for working men and women. The appointees are:
- Mario Cliento, Pres., AFL-CIO
- Ted Potrikus, President and CEO, Retail Council of NYS
- Kathryn Wilde, President and CEO, Partnership for NYC
- Heather Briccetti, President and CEO, Business Council of NYS
- Dean Norton, Pres., NY Farm Bureau
- Gary LaBarbera, Pres.ident Building and Construction Trades Council of Greater NY
- Robert Grey, Chair, NY Workers' Compensation Alliance
The full press release, which can be viewed here, also includes an announcement that the Council will be accepting comments and recommendations online through May 26th. Recommendations can be submitted to brcnys@exec.ny.gov.