Budget Update 

Yesterday the Legislature passed a second budget extender (A7635/S7156) allowing for emergency appropriations through Monday, April 7 as the April 3 deadline for the first budget extender was not met. Governor Hochul’s policy priorities are holding up the budget process as parties are still dug in on issues like discovery reform, involuntary commitment, as well as a potential mask ban in cases where one is masked while threatening violence, which was not included in the Governor’s initial budget proposal. Senate Finance Chair Liz Krueger recently expressed frustration with policy taking up all the air with negotiations as she told Politico “We’re not even discussing numbers. She’s obsessed with her policy, and she doesn’t even want to talk about the other stuff. It’s frustrating.”

Next week will be the last chance to wrap up the budget before the scheduled two-week legislative break to observe Passover and Easter. While it is still possible the budget will be voted on before the break, there is a chance these negotiations could be extended further.

We will continue to keep you updated as negotiations proceed.

CDPAP Update

The Consumer Directed Personal Assistance Program (CDPAP), which allows those on Medicaid to receive home care services from family members was set to transition to a single fiscal intermediary, PPL, by April 1. Due to the lagging transition of the 280,000 people who use the Program, caused by challenges like long wait times, technical difficulties and language access issues, the State initiated a 30-day grace period for individuals to make the transition to PPL with a promise to pay workers retroactively.

Most recently, a federal judge issued a temporary restraining order which prevents the State from stopping its work with the 600 fiscal intermediaries previously contracted allowing home care workers who have not made the transition to PPL to be paid past the April 1 deadline. The restraining order does not prevent the continued transition to PPL and lasts until April 4 when the parties are scheduled to appear in court. As of today, the Department of Health reported that 93% of consumers have either started or completed the switch to PPL.