Legislative Bulletin: Advocacy Alert - Oppose Nurse Staffing Ratios!

Staffing Ratio Legislation Moves in the Assembly
Now that the budget is passed and lawmakers are returning to Albany after a two week recess, the focus will now be on moving legislation through committees and on to the house calendars to be debated for passage. This is a critical time in the legislative session; organizations, unions and other advocacy groups will make their way to Albany to advocate for their priorities, and we must do the same. Currently, there is a bill in both houses that would create specific staffing ratios for nurses and other direct-care staff in hospitals and nursing homes, known as the Safe Staffing for Quality Care Act (A.1548 (Gottfried)-S.782 (Hannon)). The bill, which LeadingAge NY opposes, was placed on the Assembly Health Committee agenda for Wed., April 22, and is a top priority for the NYS Nurses Association who will be in Albany on Tues., April 21 advocating in support of the bill. It is crucial that lawmakers hear from the providers who will be affected by this unfunded mandate, please send an email to your lawmakers now, urging them to oppose this legislation.

Obama Signs “Doc Fix” Into Law
President Obama signed into law the Medicare Access and CHIP Reauthorization Act of 2015, also known as “doc fix.” The new law repeals the current Sustainable Growth Rate formula-based methodology for determining annual updates to the Medicare Physician Fee Schedule (MPFS). The MPFS determines Medicare Part B rates paid to physicians and other practitioners, along with the rates paid to nursing homes and home care providers for ancillary services. Read LeadingAge NY’s summary of the legislation here, and most importantly, thank you to all of our members who urged their Congressional representatives to support this effort.

Online Registration Now Available for the PAC Golf Tournament!
The LeadingAge NY PAC Golf Tournament is only a month away and foursomes are filling up quickly! If you have not yet registered for the Mon., May 18 tournament, you may now do so online. Sponsorship opportunities are also still available and very much appreciated! Click here to learn more about this year’s event.

Contact: Alyssa Lovelace, alovelace@leadingageny.org, 518-867-8844