(Aug. 13, 2024) The State Department of Health (DOH) posted spending guidance for adult day health care (ADHC) and assisted living programs (ALPs) who received funding last month for workforce and other spending initiatives under the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA).  The ALP ARPA Spending Guidance is here.  The ADHC ARPA Spending Guidance is here.  

The funding and corresponding guidance had been delayed, and in some instances funding amounts have been increased from original approval sums. The guidance provides some clarity on items appropriate for spending, as well as details on new schedules for reporting and when its appropriate to resubmit spending plans for re-approval.     

Other provisions to note:  

• Programs should resubmit spending plans to the Department for approval only if “substantive” changes are made to their approved spending plans or if their spending plan was not fully approved. ​​​​​​​We have submitted questions to the Department regarding what constitutes “substantive”. In conversation with the Department, they have communicated that providers increasing the dollar amount on some of their approved spending items do not have to resubmit their spending plans, but if a program adds completely new spending items, it should share this with the Department.  
• The funding and guidance was provided long after the original proposed schedule for the distribution of funds. Therefore the spending schedules will need to be updated. Programs should make these scheduled spending changes internally; they do not need to be shared with the Department.  
• The DOH will send participating providers surveys each quarter that will require reporting of spend down progress and allow providers to attach invoices and other documents relevant to spending.   
• The timeline for spending has been delayed to July 31, 2025.  If programs are unable to fully spend the funds before this deadline, they should reach out to the Department by Feb. 1, 2025 to request an extension.  The Department will consider extension requests on a-case-by-case basis.   
• The guidance shares additional information on allowable and non-allowable spending, general funding information, penalties and FAQs.   

Assistance and Resources:  

1) Any questions can be sent to DOH at: adhc_arpa@health.ny.gov  

2) More information on New York’s enhanced FMAP for Home and Community-Based Services efforts can be found here: American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 Home and Community-Based Services(HCBS) Enhanced Federal Matching Percentage (eFMAP). 

General ARPA DOH web page – Look at section labeled Initiative Information:  https://health.ny.gov/health_care/medicaid/redesign/hcbs/enhanced_funding/ 

Please contact us with any questions or concerns you may have regarding this initiative.

Contact: Meg Everett, meverett@leadingageny.org, 518 867-8871.