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January 21, 2015
First Look at the NYS 2015-16 Executive Budget Proposal
From: Harvey Rosenthal, NYAPRS Executive Director
A preliminary look at Governor Cuomo’s budget proposal for the coming 2015-16 fiscal year offers our community some important advances and some troubling disappointments.
‘Housing is Essential to Mental Health Recovery’ will be a major theme for NYAPRS’ advocacy this year. This year’s proposal provides some very notable enhancements (supported housing stipends) and expansions (NYNYIV, Community Reinvestment and criminal justice related units).
At the same time, the housing base badly needs a 20 year overdue across the board increase, more beds for the homeless are needed and it is an outrage that, after all of the talk and legal action, adult home residents continue to await for long promised community housing and supports.
We congratulate the Governor for the serious steps he’s taken in the area of criminal justice and hope that the Administration and Legislature can get together to find funds to establish Medicaid presumptive eligibility and to enhance Crisis Intervention Team initiatives.
Staying the course and fronting out another $15 million to enhance community services in advance of bed closures represents another strong step in bolstering services in local communities.
And the reauthorization of the managed care readiness is critical to success of New York’s bold move to redesign our Medicaid systems.
Locking in on the COLA is a much needed recognition of the value of our workforce but we’ll need a bigger across-the-board increase.
Finally, we’re especially watching how the Community First Choice initiative may provide a very significant tool and funding to bring full community integration to so many more.
Special thanks to Glenn Liebman: we worked closely to get our assessments out as quickly as possible.
Don’t Miss These 2 Special Events!
* Tomorrow’s 2:30 pm NYAPRS Member Budget Briefing webinar; register now at https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/7485422749312836865
* February 25th NYAPRS Annual Albany Legislative Day; See more details in attached flyer or at http://www.nyaprs.org/e-news-bulletins/2015/006867.cfm or by emailing NYAPRS Policy Director Briana Gilmore at brianag at nyaprs.org<mailto:brianag at nyaprs.org>.
Here are more details as we understand them from a first look.
HOUSING
* Supported Housing Rent Stipend Hike: The budget extends stipend adjustments to additional upstate counties.
o In contrast, we are asking for $43 million to increase the supported housing rate statewide to make up for losses from inflation and to establish sustainable rates going forward based on a reasonable formula
* New York/New York IV supportive housing for homeless individuals who may have psychiatric disabilities: the Governor is proposing to use $115 million of JP Morgan settlement funds to add 5,000 beds.
o We joined with supportive housing advocates in seeking 30,000 additional units (15,000 units of new construction and 15,000 scatted in new affordable housing development and market rate housing).
* Additional Housing and Community Supports: $20 Million for:
o 1,200-1,300 new OMH and OASAS NY/NY III and other priority beds
o New OMH supportive housing units for 400 current adult home residents and 100 nursing home residents with psychiatric conditions
o 250 new OMH Home and Community Based Waiver slots
o 300 new OMH community opportunities, including intensive case management services.
CRIMINAL JUSTICE
* $22 Million in new Community-based Initiatives: in recognition of the critical need to improve mental health treatment, discharge planning and post-release supports, these funds are OMH will provide additional in-prison assessments and treatment for high risk inmates, maintain individuals in OMH facilities when appropriate, and provide more aggressive community services through the use of additional Assertive Community Treatment (ACT) teams and supported housing and related services.
o NYAPRS will urge state legislators to annualize and expand Crisis Intervention Treatment initiatives and to establish Medicaid presumptive eligibility to ensure that newly discharged individuals get immediate access to Medicaid health and behavioral healthcare.
* Youthful Offender Age Raised from 16 to 18: the Governor’s very welcome proposal calls for juvenile processing for all but serious crimes of violence; access to programs and services tailored to support rehabilitation for all minors under age 18; sentencing for all but the gravest crimes of violence be customized to youth rather than adult sentencing structures; opportunities to move beyond commission of one nonviolent crime as a youth; and removal of all minors from adult jails and prisons.
COMMUNITY REINVESTMENT
* The Executive Budget adds $15 million in new funding from the expected closure of another 136 beds and annualizes $44 million of new community services funded by previous state hospital bed reduction that have apparently been allocated along the following lines, based on an October MISCC presentation:
o 628 Units of Supported Housing ($7.1 million)
o 168 Waiver Slots ($4.5 million)
o State Operated Community Services ($14.9 million)
o Other Community/Aid to Localities ($15.9 million)
o Suicide Prevention and Forensic funding ($1.5 million)
ADULT CARE FACILITIES CRIMINAL HISTORY RECORD
* $1.3 million to support the administration of criminal history record checks for staff at adult care facilities.
CUT/REPROGRAM EQUAL TO SUPPORT MOVE TO COMMUNITY HOUSING
* A quality improvement program for adult homes has been cut by $3.3 million with the remaining amount redirected to “to support the move of adult home residents to supportive community housing.
MANAGED CARE READINESS
* The budget continues funding for managed care readiness initiatives, including soon-to-be released IT and start up grant dollars for non-Medicaid providers.
o NYAPRS is pushing very hard for some of these funds to go to managed care educational materials and presentations for both beneficiaries and their families, as well as to fund additional Medicaid Managed Care Ombuds personnel to assist with rights and choice protections.
COST OF LIVING ADJUSTMENT
* The budget annualizes the previously approved 2% Cost of Living Adjustment for community based direct care and clinical professionals.
o NYAPRS and our colleagues are seeking across the board COLAs for all agency staff.
COMMUNITY FIRST CHOICE
* The Administration comes up strong here, proposing a pathway to the Community First Choice program (1915.k Medicaid waiver) that, from our understanding, could fund transitional supports from IMDs like state hospitals and nursing homes for New Yorkers with disabilities who might otherwise remain needlessly institutionalized. These funds could cover “expenses incurred when moving from an institution to the community, such as security deposits for an apartment or utilities, as well as basic kitchen supplies, bedding, and other necessities required for transition”, along with help in “learning how to use public transportation”. CFC clients also qualify for attendant services to assist in accomplishing ADLs (like bathing, dressing) and IADLs that support ‘an independent life style’ like (cooking, shopping, keeping track of finances and managing medication). Stay tuned for more details about CFC as we get them.
GREATER OMH/OASAS COLLABORATION
* Although there’s no specific mention, we believe that representatives from the 2 agencies will be reaching out to stakeholders to get input on the benefits and challenges involved in increasing their collaboration and consolidating functions.
CREATE OFFICE FOR COMMUNITY LIVING
* Legislation will be advanced to engage the various agencies and stakeholders in developing a plan for the creation of an Office of Community Living. The goal of creating a new office is to improve service delivery and outcomes for older adults and disabled individuals that live in the community. There are reports that, at minimum, this will take Independent Living programming out of ACCESS-VR and into this new amalgamated agency.
NONPROFIT INFRASTRUCTURE CAPITAL INVESTMENT PROGRAM
* The Budget proposal includes $50 million for “targeted investments in capital projects to “improve the quality, efficiency, accessibility, and reach of nonprofit human services organizations”, focusing on job creation and affordable housing programs. Grants will be awarded through a competitive process, with priority given to nonprofits with state contracts that provide direct services in high-need communities, particularly smaller nonprofits and nonprofits that lack access to other capital funding opportunities. More details as we get them.
MINIMUM WAGE HIKE
* The Governor proposes to raise the minimum wage to $11.50 an hour in New York City and $10.50 an hour in the rest of the state.