Legislative Bulletin: Register NOW for 2022 Advocacy Days!
January 14, 2022
Register NOW for 2022 Advocacy Days!
Due to the ongoing pandemic and the unprecedented challenges our membership is contending with, this year’s LeadingAge New York Advocacy Days will once again be virtual, focused on virtual Zoom meetings, phone calls and letter writing. Please CLICK HERE to register for our 2022 Advocacy Days scheduled for Feb. 9th, 10th, and 11th. Signing up for advocacy days will allow LeadingAge NY to track our advocacy impact and will ensure that you receive all relevant updates and correspondence.
Virtual advocacy poses many unique benefits, including a reduced time commitment in order to participate in meetings and the potential inclusion of residents, staff, or board members in meetings. Virtual meetings with lawmakers can be organized, scheduled, and joined all from the comfort of your own workspace. Additionally, LeadingAge NY will be making it easy for members to send digital advocacy letters and make phone calls during advocacy days to get the attention of the Legislature. Member participation in virtual advocacy days may only take an hour or two of your time but will be the most impactful tool in drawing the Legislature’s attention to our 2022 budget priorities.
To ensure we connect with as many lawmakers as possible during this critical time of the state budget process, members are strongly encouraged to begin setting up their own virtual meetings with State Senators and Assembly Members as soon as possible. When providers and constituents schedule meetings themselves, there is a higher likelihood that the elected official themselves will join the meeting. However, if you do not have the time or would prefer assistance in setting up your meetings, please simply indicate that preference on the registration form above – we will be happy to help facilitate your meetings! As an additional resource for people new to advocacy, we have developed this legislative scheduling guide to assist members in setting up their own meetings.
Please note that during advocacy days, LeadingAge NY policy staff will be available to join you for any of the meetings that you schedule. If you would like to ensure a policy team member is assigned to your meeting, please indicate this preference on your registration form. LeadingAge NY will also be scheduling a handful of virtual meetings of our own with key legislative leaders and central staff to further amplify our message.
Members can easily find out who their lawmakers are, along with relevant contact information, by using our Find My Legislators tool. Once your meetings are scheduled, please send meeting details (date, time, legislator) to Sarah Daly at sdaly@leadingageny.org. If you need assistance in scheduling your meetings, would like to use a LeadingAge NY Zoom account for the meeting, or would like to discuss any advocacy strategy, please do not hesitate to reach out to Sarah directly.
Mark Your Calendars: Budget and Advocacy Day Prep Call
As we await the details of the Governor’s Executive Budget Proposal and accompanying legislation, due next week, our team at LeadingAge NY is hard at work planning for our 2022 Advocacy Days and anticipated budget advocacy. With that in mind, we have scheduled our Budget and Advocacy Day Prep Call for Thursday, Feb. 3rd at 2 PM.
During this member-focused prep call, LeadingAge NY policy staff will review the Executive Budget Proposal, its potential impact on members, and all related budget advocacy materials and issue briefs. We also will discuss and answer any questions pertaining to our 2022 Virtual Advocacy Days and how we hope members will get involved.
We hope that you’ll join us for both our Budget and Advocacy Day Prep call, as well as our 2022 Advocacy Days! Please take a moment to add the below member call information to your calendars:
2022 Budget and Advocacy Day Prep Call
When: Feb 3, 2022 at 2:00 PM EST
Join by webinar link: https://leadingageny.zoom.us/j/96632753135?pwd=OXVOMFh6NE5XQUJmSnhvVW54ZUZoUT09
Passcode: 211657
Or dial by telephone: 888 475 4499 (Toll Free)
Webinar ID: 966 3275 3135
All the latest information about our prep call and 2022 Advocacy Days is also available on our Advocacy webpage.
LeadingAge NY Testifies Before PHHPC on Booster Mandate
On Tuesday, Jan. 11th, the Public Health and Health Planning Council (PHHPC) held a meeting to review proposed emergency regulations mandating health care personnel of hospitals, nursing homes, adult care facilities (ACFs), home care, hospice, and diagnostic and treatment centers to receive any COVID-19 vaccine booster or supplemental dose as recommended by the CDC. As we reported in Tuesday’s Intelligence article, the booster mandate was approved by the PHHPC, as well as a related regulation that adds booster shots to existing requirements imposed on nursing homes and ACFs to provide staff and residents with access to COVID-19 vaccinations within a specified time period.
LeadingAge NY submitted comments to the PHHPC prior to the meeting, and Jim Clyne, President and CEO of LeadingAge NY, testified in person to reinforce our position. His testimony is available here.
Priority Long-Term Care Legislation Active for 2022 Session
The 2022 Legislative Session kicked off last week and is scheduled to conclude on June 2nd. LeadingAge NY is prepared for another session that is sure to be a busy one for long-term care related issues and we want to be sure that our members are aware of the many pieces of legislation that we are tracking and consider to be a priority. While the first half of session (Jan-March) will largely be focused on budget work, there is a whole slew of legislation that stands to move and be passed by both houses over the course of the next 5 months.
We encourage members to take a look at our list of priority bills active for 2022 session, a document which reviews the legislation we’ve been tracking, our position, and where bills landed at the end of the 2021 session. In addition to this list, we anticipate that many new bills will be introduced over the course of this year. We will be sure to keep members apprised of all priority bill movement, and what you can do to advocate for or against legislation that will impact your organization and the individuals in your care.
Supreme Court Decisions on CMS and OSHA Vaccine Mandates
Last night, the Supreme Court issued its decisions on the CMS and OSHA ETS COVID-19 vaccine mandates. The CMS Interim Final Rule (IFR) will be allowed to proceed nationwide, but the OSHA ETS has been blocked.
CMS posted a press release last night stating that timelines that apply to providers in the states that were required to move ahead with implementing the IFR on Dec. 28th are not changed. While New York is subject to its own State vaccine mandate, components of the CMS mandate relating to documentation and policy implementation will require compliance by providers.
Providers in New York State that are subject to the CMS mandate, including nursing homes, CHHAs, and hospice programs, should be in an excellent position to comply with the CMS mandate as a result of earlier compliance with the New York State HCP mandate. However, providers should take note of the more detailed requirements in the CMS guidance pertaining to documentation of exemptions and vaccination status, additional precautions for unvaccinated staff who have received an exemption or a temporary deferral, and contingency plans for staff who have not completed the primary vaccination series. In addition, the CMS mandate applies to board members, unless the board member participates exclusively remotely and does not have any direct contact with staff or patients.
CMS issued guidance on the mandate (QSO-22-07-ALL) on Dec. 28th. Please be sure to review the attachment(s) specific to your organization’s services. A LeadingAge NY article about the CMS QSO with the attachments is available here. More resources and tools from LeadingAge National are available here. The CMS vaccination FAQ is available here.
The OSHA ETS vaccine mandate was stayed on the basis that OSHA lacked authority to seek such a broad mandate. This would have applied to LeadingAge NY members with 100+ employees and not subject to the CMS mandate. It may be likely that OSHA seeks to issue vaccine mandates or COVID-19 protections in the future for more specific workforce populations at risk of infection from COVID-19.
In case you missed it, an extensive email alert update on the court rulings which was sent to members this morning is available here.
LeadingAge NY Submits Written Testimony on Good Cause Eviction Legislation
Last Friday, Jan. 7th, the New York State Senate Standing Committees on Judiciary and Housing, Construction, and Community Development held a hearing to examine Senate bill S.3082 (Salazar), a bill which would prohibit eviction without "good cause." Held virtually and with oral testimony by invitation only, the hearing featured tenants pitted against property owners, with advocates, activists, and legal experts providing arguments on each side. The hearing was led by Committee Chairmen Senators Hoylman and Kavanagh and attended by bill sponsor Senator Salazar as well as Senators Skoufis, Brisport, Boyle, Kaplan, Helming, Rivera, Mannion, Martucci, Palumbo, Gounardes, and O’Mara.
The “Good Cause Eviction” legislation would prohibit a landlord from failing to renew a tenancy, either through eviction or non-renewal of a lease agreement, without first showing good cause for the eviction to the court. Good cause would include reasons such as nuisance behavior or non-payment of rent – unless that non-payment is due to an unreasonable rent increase, which the bill assumes to be any increase more than the greater of 3 percent or 150 percent of the annual percentage change in the Consumer Price Index (CPI).
Earlier this week, LeadingAge NY submitted written testimony with our arguments in opposition to the legislation. While well-intentioned, the good cause eviction proposal does not appear to consider integrated senior living models and would likely have a devastating effect on their financial stability as well as the health and safety of their residents. The additional time and evidence required by this legislation to prove a landlord acting in good faith does, in fact, have “good cause” could mean more time that a senior in need – who is experiencing physical or mental distress that may be harmful to them or those around them – remains at risk.
Members should also be aware of similar legislation advancing in several localities throughout the state, including Albany, Newburgh, Poughkeepsie, Hudson, and Kingston. The Village of New Paltz is currently holding hearings to explore its own version of the proposal, with the next opportunity for public comment scheduled for Weds., Jan. 26th. Where appropriate, affected members of these localities are encouraged to contact their local representatives to make their voices heard.
LeadingAge New York will continue to monitor the progress of the good cause eviction proposal and other eviction-related legislation affecting members at the state and local levels. Members with specific questions are encouraged to reach out to Annalyse Komoroske Denio at akomoroskedenio@leadingageny.org.
LeadingAge & LeadingAge New York Coronavirus Resources
LeadingAge NY continues to closely follow all COVID-19 news and we are doing our best to keep members informed of updates, recommendations and guidelines from the Department of Health (DOH).
LeadingAge NY and LeadingAge National Member resources are linked below.
LeadingAge NY Coronavirus Resources
LeadingAge NY COVID-19 Weekly Update calls – Mondays at 11 a.m. Click here to join the call from your computer, android or apple device. Or you can join the call by dialing in: 877 853 5257 (Toll Free); Webinar ID: 852 964 255.
*Please note: Next week’s COVID-19 Update call will be held on Tues., Jan. 18th at 11 a.m. in observation of Martin Luther King Jr. Day. All information for joining remains the same.
LeadingAge National Coronavirus Resources Page
COVID-19 Group in the MyLeadingAge Member Community
LeadingAge National Coronavirus Policy Updates – Mondays and Wednesdays at 3:30 p.m. Past call recordings are available here and you can register here for future calls.
*Please Note: LeadingAge National will not be holding a Coronavirus Policy Update on Mon., Jan 17th in observation of Martin Luther King Jr. Day.
Contact: Sarah Daly; 518.867.8845; sdaly@leadingageny.org