January 8, 2026
This morning (THURSDAY, 9:15 sharp) NYS Council members will be meeting with Assemblywoman JoAnn Simon, Chair, Assembly Mental Hygiene Committee, via Zoom. Importantly, Assemblywoman Simon along with Senator Samra Brouk, are the primary sponsors of our carve out legislation.
It will be important for NYS Council members, including (but not limited to) those in/around Assembly District 52, to join the call and share your feedback with your Assembly representative re: the urgent need for a carve out, as well as our ongoing need for a robust investment in our workforce, and additional resources to anticipate rising numbers of uninsured New Yorkers that are caught in the federal Work Requirement traps coming our way in 2027.
For a look at a map that highlights Assemblywoman Simon’s district, click here: https://assembly.state.ny.us/mem/Jo-Anne-Simon/map/
And here’s a link to join the meeting today at 9:15 sharp:
Join Zoom Meeting
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/86270941266?pwd=OUFFSTRSaWZDOFRVNk8xUHBXY3Z5QT09
Meeting ID: 862 7094 1266
Passcode: 619723
In related news, here’s a link to the radio interview I did with David Lombardo, host of WCNY’s The Capitol Pressroom on Tuesday. The show aired across the state yesterday at 11:00, the first day of the new legislative session, and today it is highlighted in the daily reminder listeners receive from the Show announcing daily programming.
On December 16, we sent all of our carve out campaign association and coalition partners a digital toolkit that provides sample social media posts, sample graphics, and social handles of key stakeholders to tag in posts in support of a carve out. This was the second digital toolkit we sent our campaign partners last fall, to help amplify our message. PLEASE encourage the leaders of the associations you belong to that are signed on to our Campaign, to use these resources to help us elevate our message on social media platforms. The NYS Council will update this toolkit with new content based on the results of the upcoming executive budget proposal on January 20.
NYS COUNCIL DIGITAL TOOLKIT LINK
Also (in case you missed it), attached please find the rebuttal we prepared and sent all over the Albany universe on 12/29, and then again yesterday, in response to MCO/insurer myths and tall tales regarding the carve out proposal.
And finally, attached please find a copy of the joint sign on letter we updated on 12/8 and then re-sent to state leaders, etc. on 12/9, demonstrating broad (and growing) support for our request. The NYS Council welcomes additional associations/coalitions that want to sign on as representatives of their stakeholders.