As state budget negotiations continue, there are growing calls for help across the health care spectrum amid concerns over the impact of federal Medicaid cuts.<\/p>\n
Gov. Kathy Hochul and state lawmakers must carefully consider where to\u00a0provide\u00a0assistance\u00a0to\u00a0buffer those cuts, after months of reminding New\u00a0Yorkers\u00a0they\u00a0won\u2019t\u00a0be able to cover everything \u2014 and encouraging them to blame Republicans who voted for the 2025 federal reconciliation law.<\/p>\n
Stephen Hanse, president and CEO of the New York State Health Facilities Association, said the state\u2019s struggling nursing homes should be top of mind as leaders decide where to provide relief.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe really need to look at\u00a0the more\u00a0than 15 years of disinvestment in nursing homes,\u201d he said. \u201cAs nursing home beds close,\u00a0we\u2019re\u00a0seeing backups in\u00a0hospitals,\u00a0we\u2019re\u00a0seeing longer wait times.\u00a0It\u2019s\u00a0really rippling across the health care continuum, so we need a solid investment in nursing homes in this budget.\u201d<\/p>\n
Hanse hopes some of that funding could come from more than\u00a0$2 billion\u00a0Hochul set aside in her executive budget as a contingency plan, in case the state did not receive a federal waiver to preserve coverage for 1.3 million New Yorkers enrolled in the Essential Plan who were at risk due to federal changes.<\/p>\n
However, he is competing to be heard alongside hospitals,\u00a0which are also struggling,\u00a0and state Sen. Gustavo Rivera, chair of the Senate Health Committee, who wants some of that funding to cover an\u00a0additional\u00a0450,000 New Yorkers still expected to lose coverage in July.<\/a><\/p>\n Rivera and Assembly Health Committee Chair Amy Paulin have introduced legislation to ensure no one affected by the Essential Plan changes\u00a0loses\u00a0access to health care. The proposal has become part of budget negotiations.<\/p>\n \u201cThe governor has already appropriated\u00a0$2.4 billion\u00a0for the purposes of covering the entire thing,\u201d Rivera said. \u201cWe can\u00a0actually do\u00a0it. It falls within the boundaries of the budget the governor has already proposed,\u201d he told Capital Tonight.<\/p>\n Despite earlier fears, Hochul and state leaders have said they expect only about 150,000 people will\u00a0ultimately be\u00a0left without coverage in July.<\/p>\n \u201cOf the 450,000 who are affected by the notifications we are required by law to give out, we think about 300,000 will still be covered,\u201d Hochul said Saturday. \u201cThey\u2019ll either be covered by their employer as they were before, or they will be able to purchase new health care.\u201d<\/p>\n Hochul\u2019s budget director, Blake Washington, acknowledged the proposal last week and expressed a willingness to help those still at risk of losing coverage, while also pointing to fiscal constraints.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s\u00a0just fitting it into a financial plan with many competing interests.\u00a0Medicaid in New York has grown at a pretty steady clip,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Beyond those\u00a0major issues, there are also smaller health care disputes in play.<\/p>\n