LiveOn NY’s Testimony at FY25 Preliminary Budget Aging Hearing

New York City Council

Committee on Aging

Chair Hudson

March 8th, 2024

Preliminary Aging Budget FY25

My name is Kevin Kiprovski, and I am the Director of Public Policy at LiveOn NY. Thank you for the opportunity to testify.

LiveOn NY’s members include more than 110 community-based nonprofits that provide core services under the NYC Aging portfolio and many other home and community based services in our city. 

Background

Council discretionary funding is foundational to the work our network does, as a disproportionate amount of funding comes from each of you and your colleagues' offices when compared to the administration’s investment. We are so grateful for your support and without it our current system would not be possible, so a heartfelt thank you from us and our members.   

Older Adult Services have huge capital needs due to deteriorating spaces, appliances, and vehicles that have gone without necessary upgrades for the past decade. Case management organizations are serving individuals with more intensive mental health issues with less funding from the city. At the same time the administration is cutting $18 million dollars from OACs with planned cuts of over $50 million dollars in the next 5 fiscal years to a system that they have refused to comprehensively invest in citing administrative hurdles and a lack of need that does not match the reality of older adults across our city. 

• Organizations have broken refrigerators, floors, bathrooms, kitchens, vans, HVAC systems, roofs, elevators, and many other capital items. The administration is penalizing organizations for these issues, but when organizations request funding to repair them they are either juggled through agencies, asked to use their non-existent accruals, or denied for a litany of reasons. 

• Older adult centers in NYCHA spaces have faced the brunt of this, as some have physically collapsed or have such comprehensive mold issues that they cannot open and are not being used. This is part of the “underutilization” argument the administration has been using to justify cuts to the system. The lack of a functional partnership between NYC Aging and NYCHA and confusion arising from RAD conversions has made it difficult for programs operating in these spaces to receive any capital funding. 

• Case management contracts have seen a reduction in resources across the board leading to a loss of administrative staff and increases in the caseloads of case managers from 65 to over 80 in some instances. Clients are also presenting with higher rates of undiagnosed mental health issues and dementia and are being released from rehab and hospitals after extended stays back into their homes which have deteriorated rapidly due to their absence and in some cases are uninhabitable. 

• Home Delivered Meals providers have been operating with a $2.53 average deficit per meal served that will be continued in the new RFP. 

Recommendations

• Maintain the existing council discretionary funding to keep our system whole. 

• ($50 Million) to create a capital funding pot to get centers and resources in a state of good repair. There must be a baselined funding stream that keeps the physical spaces and resources of our system in good repair. Organizations cannot contract with the city on these services if the city cannot commit to paying for the resources needed to do this work.  

• Identify and reform existing obstructions to providing capital funding across the board, but particularly with NYCHA and RAD converted properties. Organizations have been able to secure capital funding through alternative city, state and federal sources for projects that were not approved for capital funding by the administration. Administrative hurdles should not be cited as the reason older adult centers are falling apart and the city has the ability to change its own rules to get the funding where it needs to be.

•  $20 million to expand social work support across the network  to allow for more service to New Yorkers. Organizations on average need 2 more case managers and 1 intake staff to create a program that can keep talent and serve the community well. This will allow higher needs cases to be handled effectively and keep the focus on service instead of admin work.  

• $12 million to increase the per meal rate for HDM programs to $15.31 per meal. HDM providers report an average deficit of $2.53 dollars per meal served, the contract with the city should at least pay for the services that they require. 

• Reverse ALL cuts to the aging system. We have identified acute needs across the system that any currently unspent funds could be used to remedy. Pulling money out of this system will only create a death spiral through physical deterioration of centers and resources, or fiscal insolvency for many smaller providers. 

 Thank you for the opportunity to testify.

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For questions, please email Kevin Kiprovski, Director of Public Policy at LiveOn NY, kkiprovski@liveon-ny.org.

LiveOn NY’s members provide the core, community-based services that allow older adults to thrive in their communities. With a base of more than 100 community-based organizations serving at least 300,000 older New Yorkers annually. Our members provide services ranging from senior centers, congregate and home-delivered meals, affordable senior housing with services, elder abuse prevention services, caregiver supports, case management, transportation, and NORCs. LiveOn NY advocates for increased funding for these vital services to improve both the solvency of the system and the overall capacity of community-based service providers.

LiveOn NY also administers a citywide outreach program and staffs a hotline that educates, screens and helps with benefit enrollment including SNAP, SCRIE and others, and also administers the Rights and Information for Senior Empowerment (RISE) program to bring critical information directly to seniors on important topics to help them age well in their communities.

58 Organizations Call on Mayor Adams to Exempt DFTA from the 3% Budget Cut

Last month, Mayor Eric Adams announced a 3% budget cut under the Program to Eliminate the Gap (PEG) across most City agencies to close the gap in the City budget for Fiscal Years 2022 and 2023, and the years ahead. In response, 58 organizations called on Mayor Adams in a recent letter to exempt DFTA from the 3% budget cut. Read LiveOn NY’s statement.

Read the full letter below.

Dear Mayor Adams and Commissioner Jiha, 

The undersigned organizations, which represent non-profit service agencies, advocacy organizations, and other entities working to make New York a better place to age, call on you to exempt the Department for the Aging (DFTA) from the 3% budget cut under the Program to Eliminate the Gap (PEG). Moreover, as the City looks to continue to recover from COVID-19 it should look to bolster all human services, which have been leaned on so heavily over the past two years. Further, we call on the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to fulfill its previous commitment to increasing funding for the home-delivered meals program by allocating an additional $2.3 million in FY22 and $9.4 million in FY23 as was promised.

Under the PEG, you have exempted “the Department of Correction, Health + Hospitals, Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, and the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner, due to the unique challenges these agencies currently face.” However, for years, the Department for the Aging (DFTA) has been chronically underfunded and understaffed with the budget remaining at less than ½ of 1% of the overall budget, despite a rapidly increasing older adult population. Further, the continued global pandemic, which has disproportionately impacted and taken the lives of older New Yorkers certainly constitutes a “unique challenge” requiring DFTA be held harmless to remain laser-focused on combating COVID-19.

Through a network of community-based nonprofits DFTA provides critical services to combat isolation, promote mental health, prevent elder abuse, address food insecurity, and ensure all older New Yorkers can safely age in community. A budget cut to DFTA — even a cut to its headcount, which directly correlates to its ability to process contracts, execute payments, and support community-based providers — would further jeopardize the sustainability of providers with already inadequate funding and their ability to continue to provide equitable community-based aging services to all New Yorkers. 

Finally, we ask you fulfill the City’s previous commitment to allocate an additional $2.3 million in FY22 and $9.4 million in FY23 to support older adults and providers by increasing funding for home-delivered meals (HDM) for older adults by increasing reimbursement rates. This program is a lifeline for many older adults who rely on the HDM program to access a nutritious meal, and additional funding is critical to addressing historical underfunding as well as rising costs of raw food and labor market changes.

Human services and aging service providers have been the backbone of our City, particularly throughout the pandemic, providing older adults with necessary services and support to safely age in community. We believe every New Yorker deserves a quality of life and the ability to age in community with equitable access to services regardless of one’s zip code. To reach this goal, the City cannot allow the DFTA budget to experience further cuts that will jeopardize the future of aging services. 

Respectfully,

LiveOn NY

Allen Community Senior Citizens Center

Alpha Phi Alpha Senior Citizens Center, Inc.

Association of Black Social Workers

Bay Ridge Center, Inc.

Bronx House 

Brooklyn Chinese-American Association

Brooklyn Neighborhood Services

CaringKind, the Heart of Alzheimer's Caregiving 

Catholic Charities Neighborhood Services 

Charles A Walburg Multi-Service Organization, Inc Inc

Chinese-American Planning Council

COHME Inc.

Community Agency for Senior Citizens, Inc. (CASC)

Corona Congregational Church/Florence E. Smith Senior Services

COTHOA Luncheon Club Inc 

Elmcor Youth & Adult Activities Inc.

Encore Community Services

Friends of the Lower East Side

Goddard Riverside

Grand St. Settlement

Gray Panthers NYC

Greenwich House

HANAC, Inc.

Hamilton-Madison House

Harlem Advocates for Seniors, Inc.

Heights and Hills

Henry Street Settlement

India Home

JASA

JCCGCI

Jewish Community Council of Greater Coney Island

KCS Korean Community Services of Metropolitan New York, Inc

Life Story Club

Long Term Care Ombudsman Program

MidBronx Senior Citizens Council Inc.

Morningside Retirement and Health Services

New York State Alliance for Retired Americans

Older Adults Technology Services

Osborne Association 

Project FIND

Project Guardianship

PSS (Presbyterian Senior Services)

Recreation Rooms and Settlement Inc. 

Riverdale YM & YWHA

Riverstone Senior Life Services

RSS Riverdale Senior Services, Inc.

SAGE

SC Group

Search and Care

Selfhelp Community Services

Services Now for Adult Persons, Inc. 

Sisters of Charity Housing Development Corporation

SKA Marin

The New York Academy of Medicine

Union Settlement 

Vision Urbana, Inc.

West Side Federation for Senior and Supportive Housing

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LiveOn NY Calls on Mayor Adams to Exempt DFTA from the 3% Budget Cut

January 19 2022 (New York, NY) – Last week, Mayor Eric Adam announced a 3% budget cut under the Program to Eliminate the Gap (PEG) across most City agencies to close the gap in the City budget for Fiscal Years 2022 and 2023, and the years ahead.

LiveOn NY calls on Mayor Adams to exempt the Department for the Aging (DFTA) from the 3% budget cut. Moreover, as the City looks to continue to recover from COVID-19 it should look to bolster all human services, which have been leaned on so heavily over the past two years. Further, we call on the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) to fulfill its previous commitment to increasing funding for the home-delivered meals program by allocating an additional $2.3 million in FY22 and $9.4 million in FY23 as was promised.

Under the PEG, Mayor Adams has exempted “the Department of Correction, Health + Hospitals, Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, and the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner, due to the unique challenges these agencies currently face.” However, for years, the Department for the Aging (DFTA) has been chronically underfunded and understaffed with the budget remaining at less than ½ of 1% of the overall budget, despite a rapidly increasing older adult population. Further, the continued global pandemic, which has disproportionately impacted and taken the lives of older New Yorkers certainly constitutes a “unique challenge” requiring DFTA be held harmless to remain laser-focused on combating COVID-19.

“For too long, DFTA and aging service providers have worked tirelessly, to provide essential community-based aging services - from home-delivered meals, to Older Adult Centers, to case management - to older adults despite the lack of adequate funding,” said Allison Nickerson, Executive Director at LiveOn NY. “A 3% budget cut to DFTA would further strain the agency and providers, posing a risk to older adults who rely on these services to safely age in community. We urge the City to exempt DFTA from the budget cut and stand on their commitment to support all older adults to ensure we can all thrive in community as we age.”

Human services and aging service providers have been the backbone of our City, particularly throughout the pandemic, providing older adults with necessary services and support to safely age in community. We believe every New Yorker deserves a quality of life and the ability to age in community with equitable access to services regardless of one’s zip code. The City cannot allow the DFTA budget to experience further cuts that will jeopardize the future of aging services.

Press Contact:

Katelyn Andrews, Director of Public Policy, kandrews@liveon-ny.org

Brianna Paden-Williams, Communications and Policy Associate, bpaden-williams@liveon-ny.org

About LiveOn NY

LiveOn NY’s members provide the core, community-based services that allow older adults to thrive in their communities. With a base of more than 100 community-based organizations serving at least 300,000 older New Yorkers annually. Our members provide services ranging from senior centers, congregate and home-delivered meals, affordable senior housing with services, elder abuse prevention services, caregiver supports, case management, transportation, and NORCs. LiveOn NY advocates for increased funding for these vital services to improve both the solvency of the system and the overall capacity of community-based service providers.

LiveOn NY also administers a citywide outreach program and staffs a hotline that educates, screens and helps with benefit enrollment including SNAP, SCRIE and others, and also administers the Rights and Information for Senior Empowerment (RISE) program to bring critical information directly to seniors on important topics to help them age well in their communities.

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TESTIMONY: FY17 LiveOn NY Aging Budget

FY17 LiveOn NY Aging Budget Budget Priorities Chart note: acrobat format
Salary Parity Sheet note: acrobat format
Housing Waitlist by Council Member District Chart note: acrobat format
Case Management Waitlist and Turnover Chart note: acrobat format

New York City Council

FY17 Aging Committee Budget Hearing

Council Member Margaret Chin, Chair

March 4, 2016

Testimony of Bobbie Sackman, Director of Public Policy, LiveOn NY

LiveOn NY and its members across the city are dedicated to making New York a better place to age. Founded in 1979, with a membership base of more than 100 organizations ranging from individual community‐based centers to large multi‐service organizations, LiveOn NY is recognized as a leader in aging.  LiveOn NY’s membership serves over 300,000 older New Yorkers annually and is comprised of organizations providing an array of community based services including elder abuse prevention and victims’ services, case management for homebound seniors, multi‐service senior centers, congregate and home‐delivered meals, affordable senior housing with services, caregiver support services, mental health, transportation, NORCs and other services intended to support older New Yorkers.  LiveOn NY connects resources, advocates for positive change, and builds, supports and fosters innovation. Our goal is to help all New Yorkers age with confidence, grace and vitality.  LiveOn NY also advocates for meaningful policy that promotes livable communities and allows older adults to safely age in place.

LiveOn NY thanks Council Margaret Chin, Chair, Committee on Aging, and Council Member Paul Vallone, Chair, Subcommittee on Senior Centers for their leadership.

 LiveOn NY appreciates the opportunity to testify today.  Please see our FY17 attached budget priorities totaling $34.3 million for Department for the Aging (DFTA) funded services.  Each of these programs included is a critical piece of the continuum of services needed to allow older adults to remain in their homes and communities and to also support family caregivers. LiveOn NY documented that over 200,000 older New Yorkers are waiting an average of 7 years for an affordable apartment. It is many of these same seniors that are waiting for social services to support them in the community as they age.

 LiveOn NY is grateful for City Council’s FY16 allocation of additional funding last year including case management, home care, elder abuse, NORCs, adult day services, 6th congregate meals, senior center rent and transportation.  

LiveOn NY also appreciates the de Blasio Administration’s allocation of $1.4 million funding for mental health services in senior centers in the FY16 budget and $1.8 million in the FY17 preliminary budget for friendly visiting services as part of ThriveNYC. However, to date, it is our understanding, none of $1.4 million allocated in FY16 for senior centers has been spent. LiveOn NY welcomes the discussion of how to continue to address the mental health needs of older New Yorkers by including older adults in parts of the ThriveNYC plan where they aren’t currently targeted.

 LiveOn NY also applauds the de Blasio Administration for baselining $2.8 million for elder abuse services and for the first time, funding the Multi-Disciplinary Teams (MDT) model at $1.5 million.

That being said, there is still a rising unmet need for community based services for older New Yorkers.  The Preliminary Budget added little new funding to the Department for the Aging’s budget.  A large amount of funding was not baselined, and funding was not included for case management, home care, congregate and

 home-delivered meal costs, adult day services and other core programs. This will lead to waiting lists for some services.

LiveOn NY’s FAIR SHARE BUDGET CAMPAIGN – City funding for aging services does not reflect a fair share based on the rapidly growing older adult population, supports needed to allow them to age well in their homes and communities, and support for family caregivers. According to Webster, the definition of “progressive” is change, improvement or reform as opposed to maintaining things as they are on a political level, and on the community level, progressing towards better conditions for its residents. Given waiting lists for services and chronically underfunded services and salaries, it is clear that the city’s aging policy has work to do to be more progressive on behalf of older New Yorkers.

The $34.3 million budget priorities for FY17 reflect community supports for all older New Yorkers addressing:

• Senior nutrition/anti-hunger programs
• Affordable senior housing supports
• Economic security - access to benefits
• Elder abuse
• Social isolation
• Supporting family caregivers
• Culturally competent neighborhood based services

FY17 budget priorities

• Case Management - $3 million (new money) – It is troubling that the Mayor’s preliminary budget did not baseline case management and home care funds. Without baselining, it is difficult to hire case management staff. This leads to higher waiting lists and huge staff turnover. Additional funding is needed to ensure that caseloads don’t go higher than 65. Funding is also needed to serve frail, homebound seniors on waiting lists so that a social worker is available to visit them at home, assess their needs and provide ongoing services. MSW compensation level needs to be funded to ensure there is a professionally trained social worker who can work with immigrant and diverse populations and complex situations. Funding should allow agencies to hire supervisors, who both oversee hundreds of cases and carry a partial caseload.  Funding growing need and agency infrastructure are cornerstones to strengthening the case management system citywide.   To that end, LiveOn NY would also like to move forward a campaign on securing compensation parity for the Case Management system.  Please see attached sheet for more details.
• Per meal reimbursement – $3.3 million –would add 25 cents more per meal plus additional funds for kosher home-delivered meals.
• NORCS - $4 million – Thank you for funding NORCs at $2.5 million for NORCs to fund NORC programs that weren’t able to apply for DFTA’s RFP, plus some additional neighborhood NORCs.  Please fund $4.0 million to maintain and grow existing NORCs.
• Elder Abuse Victims Assistance - $3.0 million – Last year, both City Council and the Administration recognized the hidden crisis of elder abuse by allocating funding. City Council continued funding for pilot programs to four organizations that work with domestic violence in immigrant communities. This funding should be renewed to allow these services and the new pilot to continue. Through the DFTA RFP, the administration added $2 million for elder abuse victims assistance, which was baselined. Four organizations were awarded 3-year contracts that began July 1, 2015.
•  Adult Day Services - $2.3 million – Given the demographics of who is aging in NYC, calling for a system of universal adult day care through the neighborhoods of NYC is good public policy. Seniors with Alzheimer’s/dementia or other disabilities would benefit from being in a safe and therapeutic environment during the day. This would allow adult daughters, sons and spouses to remain in the workforce and take care of other parts of their life. While $2.3 million wouldn’t fund a universal system, it would at least get us back to where we were 7-8 years ago. Imagine how far behind the city is. Funding subsidizes the older adults to be able to attend the program on a regular basis. Original funding was at $2.3 million. We appreciate that City Council allocated $950,000, but this money was not baselined. $2.3 million would allow social adult day care to come back to its original funding level and meet growing need.  Access to affordable elder care is the workforce issue of the 21st century, especially for women.
• 6th weekend congregate meal - $600,000 – Thank you to City Council for the funding in FY16 to reinstate this program which was eliminated under the former administration.  Senior centers across the city have opted in to provide one additional takeaway meal on Fridays for the weekend.  Please continue this funding.
• Senior center rent (space) - $1.1 million – This funding is for senior centers paying more than 20% of their budget in rent. Please continue this funding.
• Transportation - $2 million – We are asking for $2 million to bring transportation up to the original $4million level.
• Innovative Senior Centers in Immigrant Communities - $2 million – There are currently 16 funded Innovative Senior Centers (ISCs) citywide serving a variety of communities. About 25% of them operate in communities with heavy immigrant populations. The remainder serve immigrants, but the participants are not predominantly immigrants.  The original ISC proposal developed by LiveOn NY included targeting underserved populations such as immigrants.
• Caregiver supports and respite - $3 million – Establish city funding to support caregivers. Access to affordable elder care and support for caregivers are the workforce issues, especially for women, of the 21st century. Caregivers statewide provide $32 billion of free care to loved ones. Workplace flexibility and caregiver supports go hand in hand. We need to end “secret caregiving” where thousands of women have to juggle work and caregiving responsibilities.
• ESL/Citizenship Classes at senior centers - $1 million – Re-establish the ESL/Citizenship program eliminated in 2003.  Learning in English allows elderly immigrants to engage in their local community and receive services. It brings them out of isolation and into a peer community. This could also include cultural competency training.
• Social workers in senior centers and Section 202/affordable senior buildings - $9 million – Senior centers and senior buildings are on the frontlines of serving thousands of elderly immigrants and other diverse populations citywide. Developing broad access to social work services will help older adults receive benefits, address grief and counseling issues, social isolation, crisis intervention and other issues that is culturally competent. MSW compensation level needs to be funded to ensure there is a professionally trained social worker who can work with immigrant and diverse populations. $8 million could fund half of the neighborhood senior centers. $1 million would fund social workers/service coordinators in Section 202 buildings/affordable senior buildings to pilot the efficacy of having service coordinators. An evaluation would be included to document the cost savings to the city that senior housing with services would bring. In order to hire and retain social workers, these funds must be baselined. This would support Mayor de Blasio’s affordable housing plan by including supportive services as seniors age in place. Mayor de Blasio announced he would provide 10,000 affordable senior housing apartments. LiveOn NY’s waiting list survey has documented over 200,000 low income seniors waiting an average of 7 years for an apartment.

 For more detailed information, please see the following attachments:

• Budget Priorities Chart
• Case Management Waitlist Chart
• Compensation Parity for Case Managers Funding through NYC Department for the Aging document
• Affordable Senior Housing Waitlist Information

 LiveOn NY looks forward to working with City Council and the administration to ensure that older New Yorkers can remain in their homes and communities through a network of support services designed to meet the needs of a diverse and rapidly growing older adult population. Please contact Bobbie Sackman, Director of Public Policy, 212-398-6565 x226, bsackman@liveon-ny.org or Andrea Cianfrani, Deputy Director of Public Policy, x233, acianfrani@liveon-ny.org for further information.

ALERT: Advocacy for $177 million for Aging Services

LiveOn NY’s State Legislative Conference Launches Statewide Advocacy Campaign To Fund And Modernize Aging Services!

$177 Million Multi-Year Package To Fund Services And Strengthen The Aging Services Workforce

WHAT IS HAPPENING:

• On February 1st, seventy five people from across NY state attended LiveOn NY’s conference. The multi-year $177 million budget agenda was discussed.
• Discussions about strengthening the aging services workforce, NY Connects, CSE funding for waiting lists, elder abuse and caregiving and other issues were discussed.
• Participants worked in small groups to discuss how these issues impacted their community and seniors they serve. They also brainstormed on ideas of how to do follow up locally.
• On February 2nd, visits were made to Assembymembers and Senators, to discuss the budget agenda.

WHAT YOU CAN DO – MAKING THE $177 MILLION AGENDA LOCAL

• The state budget will be completed by March 31st. It is important to meet with your local Assemblymembers and Senators as soon as possible. You can arrange for a private meeting and/or invite them to a local senior center or some other community site to specifically discuss the $177 million agenda.
• Click here to find contact information on your state Assemblymember.
• Click here to find contact information on your state Senator.
• At a senior center or other site, hold a budget forum with seniors asking questions about the budget agenda. They can choose 1-2 items to ask about. It’s more impactful to have seniors asking the questions.
• There may be priorities within the agenda that particularly impact you community. You can focus on those issues. Please give the legislators a copy of the whole $177 million agenda.
• Invite local press in to cover any meeting you have at a senior center or another public site. Take photos of the legislators and seniors to send to the press. Legislators could put the photos in their newsletter, website, Facebook, etc.
• Have seniors, agency staff, and other community leaders make phone calls and send letters to your state Assemblymember(s) and Senator(s). You can put them in bulk in a large envelope and mail to the legislator’s Albany office. Model letters are included with this alert that you can print out. Go to the websites above to find contact information and mailing addresses for your legislators.

Model Letters

State Assembly letter - English
State Assembly letter - Spanish
State Assembly letter - Chinese
State Senate letter - English
State Senate letter - Spanish
State Senate letter - Chinese