NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
BILL NUMBER: A10522
SPONSOR: Magnarelli TITLE OF BILL: An act to amend the public health law, in relation to
Medicaid providers eligible for access funding under the vital access
provider program
PURPOSE:
To expand access to capital and operational funding made available to
certain Medicaid providers.
SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS:
Section 1 amends PHL § 2826 to add assisted living program providers to
the list of Medicaid provider types that are eligible to receive tempo-
rary adjustment to the non-capital components of rates, or temporary
lump-sum Medicaid payments under the VAP program.
Section 2 amends PHL § 2826 to add assisted living program providers to
the list of Medicaid provider types included in the definition of
providers serving rural areas.
Section 3 of the bill provides an immediate effective date.
JUSTIFICATION:
Recent enacted state budgets have included substantial capital and oper-
ational funding for Medicaid providers in New York State through
programs such as the Vital Access Provider (VAP) and health care facili-
ty transformation program. However, these programs have consistently
excluded certain Medicaid providers, including assisted living programs
(ALPs) from accessing these funding sources. As a result, certain Medi-
caid provider types are ineligible to access any funding under these
programs that are designed to transform the delivery of health care in
New York.
ALPs are a vitally important part of the senior housing and health care
continuum for low-income, Medicaid-eligible seniors. ALPs serve persons
who are medically eligible for nursing home placement, but serve them in
a less medically intensive and lower cost setting. Like other Medicaid
providers, ALPs are facing increased operational costs, tighter budgets,
and much needed capital improvements. By continuing to exclude certain
Medicaid providers from accessing funding, these providers will be
unable to meet the needs of the evolving health care system, leaving the
New York with less, and more expensive, options for its residents.
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
New Bill.
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
None.
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
10522
IN ASSEMBLY
May 31, 2016
___________
Introduced by M. of A. MAGNARELLI -- read once and referred to the
Committee on Health
AN ACT to amend the public health law, in relation to Medicaid providers
eligible for access funding under the vital access provider program
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. Subdivision (a) of section 2826 of the public health law,
2 as added by section 27 of part C of chapter 60 of the laws of 2014, is
3 amended to read as follows:
4 (a) Notwithstanding any provision of law to the contrary, within funds
5 appropriated and subject to the availability of federal financial
6 participation, the commissioner may grant approval of a temporary
7 adjustment to the non-capital components of rates, or make temporary
8 lump-sum Medicaid payments, to eligible general hospitals, skilled nurs-
9 ing facilities, clinics [and], home care providers, and assisted living
10 programs, provided however, that should federal financial participation
11 not be available for any eligible provider, then payments pursuant to
12 this subdivision may be made as grants and shall not be deemed to be
13 medical assistance payments.
14 § 2. Paragraph (i) of subdivision (f) of section 2826 of the public
15 health law, as added by section 14 of part B of chapter 57 of the laws
16 of 2015, is amended to read as follows:
17 (i) Providers serving rural areas as such term is defined in section
18 two thousand nine hundred fifty-one of this chapter, including but not
19 limited to hospitals, residential health care facilities, diagnostic and
20 treatment centers, ambulatory surgery centers [and] , clinics and
21 assisted living programs shall be eligible for enhanced payments or
22 reimbursement under a supplemental rate methodology for the purpose of
23 promoting access and improving the quality of care.
24 § 3. This act shall take effect immediately.
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD15437-01-6
