A joint public hearing was held by the New York State Senate to address ongoing problems with the recent overhaul of the Consumer Directed Personal Assistant Program (CDPAP). The hearing focused on the state’s decision to transition from more than 600 fiscal intermediaries to a single statewide provider. This move, overseen by Governor Hochul and her administration, has led to several issues including missed enrollment deadlines, theft of funds affecting over 10,000 enrollees, and concerns about transparency in the selection process.
Senator Patrick Gallivan, Ranking member of the Health Committee, commented on the situation: “The state’s transition from more than 600 fiscal intermediaries to just one has been tumultuous from the start, lacking transparency and causing great concern for program participants. Questions remain about the selection of the lone provider and whether the promised savings to the state have been achieved. Hearing directly from departments, stakeholders, health care experts and others will help us determine how best to ensure families get the care and services they deserve moving forward.”
Senator Steve Rhoads, a member of the Health Committee, criticized both PPL—the vendor selected as sole intermediary—and state oversight: “The transition to a single fiscal intermediary for critical CDPAP services demanded by the Governor, has been a greater disaster than even I envisioned. Separate from Federal criminal probes regarding the Governor’s selection of her hand-picked vendor, PPL, and allegations regarding PPL’s possible labor law and wage violations, is the abject mismanagement of this transition by PPL and the New York State Department of Health which has continued to create chaos for 280,000 of our most vulnerable New Yorkers. This hearing isn’t just another formality—it’s a chance to shed light on how and why this happened; who is responsible; what needs to be done to hold them accountable and what steps need to be taken to mitigate the damage done to the families that rely upon this program to survive.”
Senator Steve Chan also addressed accountability during his remarks: “This hearing is about accountability. New Yorkers deserve answers for why a billion-dollar transition has put vulnerable patients at risk, driven out trusted caregivers, and triggered federal investigations, especially when none of the promised savings have materialized.”
Republican senators stated they had previously warned against consolidating fiscal intermediaries into a single provider but said those warnings were not heeded by Democratic lawmakers.
