Advocacy
Governor Hochul will not release her budget until January. However, she and her team are already at work building the Executive Budget proposal for the coming fiscal year. This is why Iroquois has continued and is continuing its advocacy to ensure that Upstate healthcare is fully represented during the budget discussions. It will be important to continue this work, as the budget gap is projected to be as high as $4.3 billion.
IHA has remained in contact with the Upstate legislative delegation, meeting several times to align thoughts and priorities for the upcoming session. We also met with NYS Budget Director, Blake Washington, to keep pushing for the release of allocated dollars, and the state’s fiscal health for the year to come.
During the last two Decembers IHA has hosted a joint press conference with members of the Upstate Delegation. This event gives IHA and legislators an opportunity to get ahead of the approaching session, presenting a united front and allowing our top issues to gain momentum at a pivotal time. We are in the initial planning stages of the 2024 event and will solicit priority issues from members in the weeks leading up.
Legislative
At the end of the 2024 legislative session 805 bills made it through both houses which the Governor has until December 31, 2024 to act on. Thus far she has signed slightly more than half, leaving close to 400 bills between now and the end of the year.
Political Landscape
We are just weeks away from Federal, State, and Local elections. New York is the site of several notable Congressional races that could lead to Democrats taking back the House majority. This has garnered a lot more national attention for New York than is typical, with both sides of the aisle trying to drum up support for their party.
Due to a wave of retirements and resignations in the State legislature we can expect to see a larger number of new faces post-election. Many of the Upstate seats will remain constant, but because of the influx of new legislators there will be quite a bit of shuffling between committees. Key committee chairmanships that will be up for grabs include Assembly Ways and Means, Higher Education, and Mental Health, as well as Insurance in the upper chamber. Once elections conclude we will communicate notable changes to members.
Budget and Legislative Priorities
IHA is prioritizing the creation of new and continuation of existing funding programs that will support our members to address continued challenges in operations, workforce and finances. We are also strongly advocating for the release of dollars allocated in last year’s budget. We ask for these items while also putting forth the discussion of a more stable and sustained funding source that will allow struggling Upstate facilities to plan for the future. Our discussions have included the following funding sources and programs:
- Additional information regarding MCO Tax application & implementation
- Distressed Hospital Fund
- Safety Net Hospital Fund
- Healthcare Transformation Fund
- Directed Payment Template (DPT)
- VAPAP
- Upstate Recruitment and Retention Funding
Along with the allocation of significant and stable funding that will enable Upstate hospitals to plan for and invest in infrastructure for the future, IHA is also pushing for a number of legislative measures. IHA is focused on bills that would provide additional sources of staff and free up existing staff to alleviate the financial and recruitment related burdens that stem from shortages. These measures include expanding the scope of practice for several clinical titles, temporary licensure for out of state practitioners looking to join the NYS workforce, participating in licensure compacts, and expanding mobile integrated health programming.