New York Must Protect and Preserve Managed Long Term Care During 2024 Session
**FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE**
January 9, 2024
Contact: Tyler Gilbert, tyler@marathonstrategies.com
Any Funding Reductions Would Jeopardize Safety of New York’s Most Vulnerable Residents
NEW YORK – The New York State Coalition of Managed Long Term Care Plans released the following statement in response to Gov. Kathy Hochul's 2024 State of the State address:
“Today, Gov. Hochul reiterated her strong commitment to the challenges that face New York State, particularly prioritizing sufficient access to health care and controlling costs. New York’s managed long term care (MLTC) plans are an essential element of the future of health care in New York, improving the health and well-being of nearly 280,000 people with chronic illnesses or disabilities and senior citizens who can no longer care for themselves. As Gov. Hochul and lawmakers negotiate this year’s budget, it is vital that we preserve and protect New York’s MLTC program. Cutting, eliminating, or further restricting these programs would risk disproportionate harm to some of our most vulnerable citizens. We applaud the Governor on her vision, and look forward to working with both her administration and our Legislative leaders to ensure that preserving and protecting these New Yorkers and the MLTC programs that support them every day remain a top priority, MLTC plans provide critical personalized care management services and other vital supports to Medicaid consumers, ensuring that their health and personal care needs are met in a way that allows them to live as independently and safely as possible when they can no longer perform everyday activities on their own. There is more than a decade of data demonstrating how MLTC plans have improved the lives of the State’s most vulnerable New Yorkers, helping residents who can be safely served in the community avoid institutionalization.
Today, the MLTC Coalition is calling on Albany to preserve and protect New York State’s MLTC program by:
Avoiding cuts to the Medicaid program to balance the budget;
Sustainably funding the MLTC and Medicaid Managed Care Quality Incentive Programs (QIPs), which reward plans that meet State-set quality metrics and pay for critical initiatives that help improve enrollee outcomes;
Repealing the New York Independent Assessor Program (NYIAP), which has resulted in poor quality, unnecessary cost to the system and additional layers of bureaucracy for consumers and their families; and
Collaborating with plans to enhance community-based care and supports for enrollees and their caregivers, enabling better integration with Medicare and advancing innovative payment models that reward providers for delivery of high-quality care.
The MLTC program has consistently high consumer satisfaction rates, has produced better health outcomes, has expanded vital access to at home services and has done so at a lower per-member cost than fee-for-service programs. Yet the MLTC program is put at risk by reckless reforms that would eliminate the program. New York must prioritize its most vulnerable residents, their families, and the care they receive by preserving and protecting the MLTC program.
For more information on the NYS Coalition of MLTC Plans, visit www.MLTCcares.com.
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The New York State Coalition of Managed Long Term Care (MLTC) Plans is made up of health plans that specialize in the care of adults with chronic illnesses or disability requiring long term care. Through intensive, person-centered care planning and coordination, MLTC plans help vulnerable Medicaid consumers stay in their homes and communities as long as possible. The Coalition is committed to preserving and protecting New York State’s Medicaid Managed Long Term Care program and the vital services and supports it provides to consumers and families.