COME TO ALBANY THIS TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 10TH, TO FIGHT FOR THE 2.7% INCREASE!
Advocates for hundreds of hard-pressed community providers and hundreds of thousands of New Yorkers seeking critically needed mental health and addiction recovery related services and supports are coming to Albany this coming Tuesday, February 10, to call on the legislature and Governor Hochul to provide a 2.7% targeted inflationary increase in this year’s budget. The Rally will cap a series of advocacy events, including yesterday’s news conference and today’s budget hearing.
It’s essential need you to join us…but this rally is about more than numbers, it’s about people. It’s about the peer specialists, case managers, outreach workers, crisis responders, and other staff who show up every day, often underpaid and overstretched, to support New Yorkers in their most critical moments. It’s about ensuring that mental health and substance use services remain accessible, effective, and grounded in dignity and recovery.
Get on the Free Bus: Transportation for February 10th Legislative Day
FULL BUS Brooklyn: https://forms.gle/5nKrc5iQfrn9fDsJ7
Buffalo: https://forms.gle/TXEbtrihFxA8R5f18
Hells Kitchen: https://forms.gle/N9cwVtaNAwMYaZc89
Hudson Valley: https://forms.gle/mWCLvzehfm2D6KGYA
Long Island: Long Island Bus Registration
North Country: https://forms.gle/iNDtssZpCyRPgCDu6
Queens: https://forms.gle/G78LHE5vK276733c7
Rochester: https://forms.gle/Q6kRNZ48jRnu3eEY7
Syracuse-Binghamton: https://forms.gle/ebkP6kPQcSTjdnZc7
Union Square: https://forms.gle/x4Ns2vj15XwgapFR9
Be there. Be heard.
Fight for our staff. Fight for our services.
Demand a 2.7% Targeted Inflationary Increase.
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Mental Health and Addiction Advocates Demand Higher Inflationary Rate
Katelyn Cordero Politico February 4, 2026
Mental health advocates are preparing to testify in front of the Legislature on Wednesday during a joint budget hearing for mental hygiene, where they will have the opportunity to share their requests and field questions from lawmakers.
Some advocates already started airing their demands for a higher inflationary rate increase that would allow for increased wages to behavioral health workers.
A coalition of mental health and addiction advocates took to the halls of the state Capitol on Tuesday demanding that a final budget deal include a 2.7 percent inflationary increase, saying Hochul’s proposed 1.7 percent increase falls short of what’s needed to cover the cost of living expenses, wages and benefits for workers in the field.
“Failing to invest a full 2.7% inflationary increase will only accelerate workforce turnover, leaving providers unable to retain the experienced staff people rely on for consistent, trusted care,” Luke Sikinyi, vice president of Public Policy at the Alliance for Rights and Recovery, said in a statement. “Every time a worker is lost, people are forced to rebuild trust, restart their recovery journey, and risk falling through the cracks of an already overburdened system.”
Several of the advocates who spoke at the capitol on Tuesday are expected to air their concerns to lawmakers at Wednesday’s joining budget hearing. Both chambers are expected to deliver their one-house budgets later this month, which advocates are hoping will include a higher inflationary rate.