March 28, 2024

COLA

Attached please find the Call to Action re: today’s call in for a 3.2% COLA (promised in our previous email).  It is incredibly important that we continue to press for a 3.2% COLA that is free of limitations in terms of how these funds can be used by eligible agencies.

COMMERCIAL INSURANCE MANDATE

There continues to be good support for our commercial rate mandate proposal – Part AA in the Governor’s Health/Mental Hygiene Article VII budget bill, and Part AA in both the Assembly and Senate one-house bills, that would require commercial insurers to pay at least the Medicaid rate to providers for services rendered to their beneficiaries.

To refresh the issue:  In January, the Governor responded to the NYS Council’s calls for reform and included a groundbreaking proposal in her executive budget that seeks to remedy a longstanding inequity in access to care for New Yorkers with commercial insurance who are at a significant disadvantage when trying to locate services from community-based mental health and substance use disorders due to grossly inadequate rates paid by these insurers to most providers.  The Senate included the Governor’s proposal in their one-house budget bill as did the Assembly, with a slight variation pertaining to implementation.  Achieving major insurance reform in Albany is always challenging.  As such we must be vigilant until the bitter end of state budget negotiations. We cannot take our foot off the gas.
PLEASE weigh in with your elected leaders and ask them to ensure the commercial rate mandate is included in the final enacted budget.  Remind them of what a game changer this proposal is in terms of access to care for their constituents with commercial insurance.  If you can recruit others to join the chorus of voices calling for commercial insurance rate reform, I urge you to do so early and often.

Please use the NYS Council letter generator linked on our homepage (labeled NYS Council Advocacy Action Center) at: www.nyscouncil.org and send a note to your lawmakers right now.  We need to dig deep on this one.  THANK YOU!