Legislative Bulletin: End of Session Countdown

With Just Three Session Days Left, Time for Last-Minute Advocacy Push

Only three days remain in the 2017 Legislative Session, and there are still several outstanding issues that need your attention. The window of opportunity to address our concerns is rapidly closing, which means that your lawmakers need to hear from you ASAP. At this point, please call them directly to discuss the issues outlined below, and let them know how your organization and those you serve will be impacted. Then, follow up by sending them our pre-written letters and social media messages.

LeadingAge NY greatly appreciates your advocacy during this critical time. Below are the latest updates on the key legislative initiatives we are pursuing:

ALP CON Process: A.7727-A (Lupardo)/S.5840 (Hannon), legislation which would convert the Assisted Living Program (ALP) from a competitive solicitation process to a certificate of need (CON) process that awards beds based on demonstrated community need and allow existing ALP providers to add up to nine beds through an expedited process, passed the Assembly on Thursday. In the Senate, it remains on the Floor Calendar awaiting a vote. Please help us continue the momentum and urge your lawmakers to support this critically-needed bill. There are currently no Senate co-sponsors.
Integration of Individuals with TBI: A.1425 (Jenne)/S.517 (Young), a bill which would allow the integration of individuals with a traumatic brain injury (TBI) sustained after the age of 21 into programs within the developmental disabilities service sector, passed the Senate on Thursday. In the Assembly, it remains in the Health Committee. Please keep up the pressure on your lawmakers to support this important legislation. There are currently no Assembly co-sponsors.
SSI Increase for ACFs: A.6715-B (Brindisi)/S.6732 (Serino), a bill which would increase the Supplemental Security Income (SSI) rate for adult care facilities (ACFs) by $20 per resident per day over five years (beginning April 1, 2018), is on the move in both houses. Similar legislation with an effective date of April 1, 2017 passed the Senate unanimously on Tuesday, and we are hearing that the new bill, currently in the Senate Rules Committee, will soon be coming to a vote as well. In the Assembly, the bill advanced from the Social Services to the Ways and Means Committee on Thursday. We need you to continue engaging with your lawmakers and urging their support! There is now one Assembly co-sponsor: Assemblyman Mark Gjonaj. The new Senate bill does not have any co-sponsors.
Affordable Senior Housing and Services Program: S.5141-B (Little), legislation which would establish an Affordable Senior Housing and Services Program with its own rules and scoring criteria and provide for optional basic healthy aging services for senior housing residents, passed the Senate unanimously on Tuesday. Shortly after being delivered to the Assembly, however, the bill was recalled, amended slightly, and placed back on the Senate Floor Calendar. At this time, it does not have an Assembly companion, though its original counterpart remains in the Ways and Means Committee and may be amended. Please continue to push strongly for this bill. There are now two Senate co-sponsors: Hamilton and Serino. The Assembly bill, which does not include the amendments, has one co-sponsor: Assemblyman Charles Barron.
Nursing Home Bed Hold Benefits: A.8338 (Gottfried)/S.6559 (Hannon), legislation which would fully restore the nursing home bed hold cuts included in this year’s final budget, passed the Senate on Thursday. In the Assembly, the bill advanced from the Health to the Ways and Means Committee. We need you to call your legislators and urge them to sign on! There are no Assembly co-sponsors. S.6602 (Hannon), similar legislation which would restore hospitalization bed hold payments for Medicaid beneficiaries aged 21+, also passed the Senate on Thursday but does not have an Assembly companion.

While these five bills are actively moving through the Legislature, please continue engaging your lawmakers on our other initiatives as well:

Role of the Nurse in Adult Care Facilities: A.2736-A (Gottfried)/S.4398-A (Hannon) would allow all ACFs and assisted living providers that employ nurses the option to provide nursing services directly. It remains in the Assembly and Senate Health Committees. To connect with your lawmakers and request their support of this bill, please click here. There are still only seven Assembly co-sponsors (Dinowitz, D’Urso, Galef, Lifton, Lupardo, McDonald, and Sepulveda) and no Senate co-sponsors.
Capital Funding for Assisted Living Programs: A.1612-A (Magnarelli)/S.6319 (Hannon) would enable ALPs to access Vital Access Provider (VAP) and Health Care Facility Transformation Program funds allocated in this year’s budget. It is currently in the Assembly Health Committee and on the Senate Floor Calendar. Click here to urge your lawmakers’ support. There are still no Assembly or Senate co-sponsors.
CCRC Revitalization Act: A.6450 (Schimminger)/S.5172 (Hannon) would reform Continuing Care Retirement Community (CCRC) laws and regulatory oversight, eliminating many of the current barriers to developing, expanding, and efficiently operating CCRCs in New York State. It remains in the Assembly and Senate Health Committees. Click here to review LeadingAge NY’s CCRC economic impact report and here to take action in support of this bill. There are still only three Assembly co-sponsors (Gottfried, Lupardo, and Morelle) and no Senate co-sponsors.
TBI/NHTD Carve-out of Medicaid Managed Care: A.2442 (Gottfried)/S.1870 (Hannon) would make the two-year delay of the transition of the Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) and Nursing Home Transition and Diversion (NHTD) waivers into Medicaid managed care a permanent carve-out. The bill has passed the Senate and remains in the Assembly Ways and Means Committee. Click here to encourage your legislators’ support. There are seven Assembly co-sponsors: D'Urso, Lopez, Lupardo, Lupinacci, Raia, Ramos, and Woerner.
Staffing Ratios: A.1532 (Gunther)/S.3330 (Hannon) would create specific staffing ratios for nurses and other direct care staff in hospitals and nursing homes at a cost of approximately $1.06 billion to nursing homes statewide. LeadingAge NY remains strongly opposed to this bill and asks that you reach out to your legislators and urge their opposition as well. Our Staffing Ratios Cost Template will help you determine the potential financial impact on your facility, which will be powerful information to share with lawmakers. The bill is currently in the Assembly Codes and Senate Health Committees. There are 104 Assembly co-sponsors: Abbate, Abinanti, Arroyo, Aubry, Barnwell, Barron, Benedetto, Bichotte, Blake, Brabenec, Brindisi, Bronson, Buchwald, Butler, Byrne, Cahill, Carroll, Colton, Cook, Crespo, Cusick, Cymbrowitz, D'Urso, Davila, De La Rosa, DenDekker, Dilan, Dinowitz, Englebright, Errigo, Fahy, Farrell, Galef, Gjonaj, Glick, Gottfried, Graf, Harris, Hevesi, Hooper, Hunter, Hyndman, Jaffee, Jean-Pierre, Jenne, Johns, Jones, Joyner, Kavanagh, Kearns, Kim, Lavine, Lentol, Lifton, Lupardo, Lupinacci, Magee, Magnarelli, Mayer, McDonough, McKevitt, M.G. Miller, M.L. Miller, Montesano, Mosley, Niou, Nolan, O'Donnell, Ortiz, Otis, Paulin, Peoples-Stokes, Perry, Pheffer Amato, Pichardo, Pretlow, Ra, Ramos, Richardson, Rivera, Rosenthal, Rozic, Ryan, Santabarbara, Seawright, Sepulveda, Simon, Simotas, Skartados, Skoufis, Solages, Steck, Thiele, Titone, Titus, Vanel, Walker, Wallace, Walsh, Weprin, Williams, Woerner, Wright, and Zebrowski. With the addition of Senator Bill Larkin this week, there are now 28 Senate co-sponsors: Addabbo, Alcantara, Avella, Bailey, Bonacic, Breslin, Brooks, Carlucci, Comrie, Dilan, Gianaris, Hamilton, Hoylman, Kaminsky, Kennedy, Krueger, Lanza, Larkin, Latimer, Montgomery, Murphy, Parker, Peralta, Persaud, Sanders, Serino, Serrano, and Stavisky. If your lawmakers are listed, please reach out and encourage them to withdraw their support. The bill has almost enough support to pass both houses, and so we greatly appreciate your efforts to help stop it.

DOH Extends E-Prescribing Waiver

LeadingAge NY is pleased to report that, after strong advocacy and discussions with the Department of Health (DOH), the Commissioner has extended the blanket waiver of the electronic prescribing requirements for nursing homes until October 31, 2018. The waiver had been due to expire on October 31, 2017, when the Legislature was out of session. Without the extension, a legislative fix would have been needed, so we felt strongly that this had to be addressed before both house adjourned.

The waiver announcement can be accessed here. LeadingAge NY will continue to work with DOH throughout the waiver period to attempt to solve the barriers related to e-prescribing in nursing homes. In this regard, please keep us updated on your successes or challenges with e-prescribing.

Reminder: Register for Save HUD 202 Rally

Time is running out to register for LeadingAge National’s Save HUD 202 Rally on Tues., June 27^th! The event, co-hosted by Selfhelp Community Services, will be held in the Upper Senate Park on the grounds of the U.S. Capitol. We hope you will join us as we advocate to prevent cuts to the 202 program, maintain 100% funding for those currently served by affordable housing, and expand funding to create new affordable housing for older adults. To register, please click here.

We encourage you to participate even if you are unable to make it to Washington, DC. LeadingAge National has provided numerous resources to help you engage on social media and template materials you can use to promote the Save HUD 202 campaign among your colleagues, aging services peers, and community.

Join LeadingAge’s Save Medicaid Campaign

With the Senate expected to vote on its version of the American Health Care Act (AHCA) before the July 4^th recess, LeadingAge National has announced plans to push an aggressive Save Medicaid campaign. We need you to get involved!

As we have previously reported, the legislation under consideration would convert the Medicaid program to a per capita cap or block grant. Every state would lose federal funding, forcing states to cut back on services for seniors and people with disabilities covered by Medicaid as well as reimbursement to providers. There is much at stake, and as the Senate vote draws closer, we need to make the case to every Senator that per capita caps and block grants would be catastrophic for older adults.

Please contact Senators Schumer and Gillibrand today, urging them not only to oppose these changes to Medicaid, but to lobby their colleagues to do the same. Lawmakers need to know that with the older population rapidly growing, a capped payment system will not meet the needs of those they represent. Simply put: this is the wrong policy at the wrong time.

LeadingAge National encourages you to promote the Save Medicaid campaign by sharing their social media posts on your platforms with the hashtag #SaveMedicaid. In addition, they will be launching a photo campaign next week asking people to explain why we need to save the Medicaid program. More details are forthcoming.

LeadingAge Releases QuickCast on HUD Funding and Policy Considerations

Lastly, LeadingAge National has released a seven-minute “QuickCast” discussing the latest on HUD funding, including the final 2017 funding bill, what the Trump administration submitted and what Congress is considering for 2018, and efforts to rally support for affordable housing for very low income seniors. Click here to view the QuickCast and here to access the PowerPoint slides.

Contacts:

Ami Schnauber, aschnauber@leadingageny.org, 518-867-8854

Jeff Diamond, jdiamond@leadingageny.org, 518-867-8821