Executive Budget Proposes Systematic Divestment In Long Term Care Services

ALBANY, NY (12/16/2008)(readMedia)-- The double-edged slashes to aging and continuing health care in the governor's budget will inflict wounds that will draw blood from every single New Yorker - not just the frail and vulnerable people who need these services, but from everyone who lives in or does business in this state.

It's devastation on two fronts: the human side and the economy.

The human side is obvious. Nursing homes are chalked for a 6,000-bed reduction over five years and a minimum 12 percent Medicaid funding cut. The state need not worry about those 6,000 beds - the proposed funding cuts alone will force many nursing homes to close entirely, and the people in those beds will have to find care elsewhere. At home? Not likely - the budget would also cut home care services funding by at least 10 percent. It's an assault on continuing care unlike anything we've ever seen or imagined, and will not only affect the people who need services but also their families and the people providing the services.

The economic side may not be as obvious, but its impact is inescapably dire. Health care is a major component of countless local economies, accounting for at least 10 percent of employment in 47 counties in New York, and for more than 15 percent in a dozen counties. Staffing makes up 75 percent or more of the budgets of home care and nursing home providers. NYAHSA estimates that the proposed nursing home and home care cuts would result in as many as 25,000 direct care staff losing their jobs. It doesn't take an economist to figure out the unavoidable ripple effect of those job losses: unemployment claims, local recessions, foreclosures, bankruptcy, flight from the state, a dwindling tax base and ultimately, economic devastation.

Contrary to assertions in the budget documents, these draconian cuts will compromise rather than promote high-quality care and reduce rather than ensure access to appropriate services. The proposed cuts are short-sighted enough without even considering the fact that New York is facing the incoming tidal wave of baby boomers entering their senior years, crowding into an already vulnerable system.

NYAHSA agrees that the state budget deficit is a real crisis with real impact, as is the state's economic health. We know the belt has to be tightened, but the cuts should not fall disproportionately on the backs of disabled and elderly people. Health care has always been an easy target in tough times, but during this volatile fiscal crisis, it is imperative that the state reject cuts to Medicaid, aging services and housing funding and truly ensure that our most vulnerable seniors and disabled people are protected. When times are tough, these essential services are all the more needed.

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