Announcing The Alliance for Rights and Recovery’s
Waiver Community Connection Initiative
Dear Community Members,
Over the past decade, New York’s Medicaid program has steadily expanded its focus to recognize the critical role that health-related social needs (HRSNs) play in advancing the health and recovery of almost 7 million Medicaid members.
On January 9, 2025, the state launched a new 1115 New York Health Equity Reform (NYHER) Medicaid Waiver program that authorizes and funds nine regional Social Care Networks (SCNs) to coordinate the efforts of area providers to address the core housing support, nutrition programs, and transportation needs of eligible New Yorkers.
At this time, the SCNs are fast at work getting Medicaid members screened for services and contracting with community providers to offer the HRSN services.
The Alliance for Rights and Recovery is very focused on
· helping Medicaid members to learn about and be approved to receive these services and
· promoting contracts between the SCNs and the community recovery-focused providers who can provide them.
Towards these ends, we’ve launched the Alliance’s 1115 Waiver Community Connections Initiative to provide up to date information through
· Statewide Webinars that involve presentations by representatives from the Department of Health, Office of Mental Health, the SCNs and Medicaid members
- Specialized webpages on our Alliance website that provide the latest information and events
- Weekly E-News updates and
- Personalized Support from our expertconsultant, Brett A. Scudder with guidance on navigating Waiver program’s procedures and ways to connect with regional SCNs. Contact him at BrettS@rightsandrecovery.org or text/call him at (718) 218-5672.
Please spread the word about the Waiver and our Initiative! We welcome your feedback to make these efforts meaningful for all Medicaid recipients by sending your comments to me at Lukes@rightsandrecovery.org. Together, we can maximize the impact of this program and ensure our information and support reaches those who need it most.
Luke Sikinyi, VP of Public Policy | Harvey Rosenthal, CEO | Brett A. Scudder, Consultant