Testimony: NYC Aging Committee Hearing on Supporting Unpaid Caregivers

New York City Council
Committee on Aging, Council Member Margaret Chin, Chair
Oversight Hearing on Supporting Unpaid Caregivers
November 29, 2017

LiveOn NY thanks Chair of the Committee on Aging, Council Member Margaret Chin, and the entire Committee for holding this hearing on supporting unpaid caregivers in New York City.

LiveOn NY also thanks Mayor Bill de Blasio, Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito, Finance Chair Julissa Ferreras-Copeland, Aging Chair Margaret Chin, and Department for the Aging Commissioner Donna Corrado for the critical investment of $4 million to the newly created Caregiving program in FY18. We are appreciative of all of the work done to make FY18 “the Year of the Senior” with an investment of $22 million to the Department for the Aging and we look forward to continuing these much needed gains in the year to come.

The Department for the Aging recently released “A Survey of Informal Caregivers in New York City” as required by Local Law 97 passed in 2016. The study highlights the difficulties that the estimated 1.3 million unpaid caregivers in New York City experience on a daily basis[1]. From lost earnings to a lack of information about available services, unpaid caregivers, a majority of whom are women, continue to need increased support and resources. More than half of caregivers studied provide at least 30 hours of care each week, and 3 out of 4 caregivers of older adults were over 55 themselves.

It is important to note that these caregivers not only support their loved ones, but New York State benefits an estimated $32 billion annually from these unpaid services[2]. Further, 28% of grandparents in New York City are responsible for raising grandchildren, which significantly alleviates strains on the foster care system and helps to develop the city’s youth.[3] While caregivers are economically supporting the city and state, they are often struggling themselves financially, physically, and emotionally. More can be done to support these invaluable caregivers who reside in every district and make up every race, gender, and socioeconomic status.

Beyond unpaid caregivers, who make up the unseen workforce supporting New York City’s most vulnerable, is a network of services that also provides care, support, and prevention services to seniors. The entire network of services funded by the Department for the Aging are caregiving mechanisms themselves that act as resources and options for unpaid caregivers and their loved ones. For example, social adult day programs offer peace of mind that a senior is looked after in a safe environment so a loved one can remain a part of the workforce; home-delivered meals support homebound seniors who may have nowhere else to turn for a nutritious meal; case management and home care can help a senior avoid the costly move to a nursing home by providing needed assistance with bathing and household chores. The list goes on as senior centers, NORCs, transportation services, and the entirety of the programs funded by the Department for the Aging serve a critical and cost-effective role of supporting New York’s older adults.

With the solvency of the entire system at risk, and a growing population of seniors, it is critical that the administration and City Council continue to invest in, and baseline, these proven effective aging programs and supports specific to caregivers themselves. LiveOn NY supports a fair and equitable budget that supports seniors of all backgrounds in a culturally competent, respectful, and accessible manner.

We look forward to working with our elected officials to ensure that senior and caregiving issues remain a priority and are invested in as such in the coming fiscal year. Thank you again to the New York City Council and the Committee on Aging for the opportunity to testify on the needs of unpaid caregivers.

[1] Department for the Aging, “A Survey of Informal Caregivers in New York City”, 2017.

[2] AARP, 2011

[3] Census Bureau, American Community Survey, 2013

LiveOn NY Study: New York’s Affordable Housing Crisis for Seniors Persists

Wait Time Upwards of 10.3 years; Minimum of 19,700 Seniors Languish on Affordable Housing Waitlists on the Upper West Side

Study Conducted in Manhattan Community Districts 7 and 9 — UWS Likely Indicative of City at Large

For Immediate Release

CONTACT: Andrea Cianfrani, Dir. of Public Policy, 212-398-6565x233, acianfrani@liveon-ny.org

New York, NY — The number of seniors on wait lists for affordable housing in New York continues to rise as the city gets older, according to a white paper released today by LiveOn NY, an advocacy and policy organization for New York’s community-based aging service providers.   

Highlights from the study: 

• 19,700 seniors are currently on waiting lists in Community Districts 7 and 9 on the Upper West Side. With an overall response rate of 44%, it is estimated that an astounding 44,028 seniors are on waiting lists for affordable housing through the HUD202 program in this neighborhood alone.

• Of the seven affordable housing developments which responded to the study, only three were currently accepting additions to their waitlists

• With an average wait time of 10.6 years, a senior who signs up for affordable housing at the moment of eligibility—62 years old—will wait on average until he or she is 72.6 for affordable housing.

“This study is proof of something we’ve known for a long time—New York City must continue to expand the stock of affordable senior housing with services, which allow seniors to age in the communities they have helped to build,” said Allison Nickerson, Executive Director of LiveOn NY. “As New York gets older, it is crucial that we direct resources to developing new affordable housing and ensuring that seniors can age with dignity and respect. Our communities must rally around organizations and elected officials who fight to make New York a better, safer city to age in place.” 

Approximately 45 affordable units become vacant in the neighborhood each year.  With over 19,700 seniors waiting to receive them, the odds of receiving affordable housing have become increasingly bleak. However, the white paper notes that the disparity in affordable housing access would almost certainly be even wider without the work of local and city officials to close the gap—including mayor Bill de Blasio’s efforts to construct or preserve 15,000 units of affordable senior housing as a component of the city’s overall housing plan, and Council Members Mark Levine and Vanessa Gibson’s initiative to ensure that low income tenants have access to a civil lawyer when facing eviction. 

Though the study takes place in Community Districts 7 and 9, the organization believes that the findings are indicative of the city at large, where over 200,000 seniors are on waitlists for affordable housing, according to an earlier study.

“Too many of the most vulnerable New Yorkers – especially seniors – are currently facing a staggering affordability crisis in our city,” said New York City Council Member Mark Levine. “New Yorkers have the right to affordable housing, which is why I’m so proud that just this August -- with the invaluable help of advocates like LiveOn NY -- we were able to pass my legislation creating a right to counsel for tenants facing eviction, which will protect tens of thousands for seniors from being unfairly evicted from their homes. However, this report makes it clear there is still much more to do. I look forward to continuing to work with LiveOn NY, and my colleagues such as Council Member Margaret Chin, to make sure the City is doing everything in its power to help the 200,000 seniors currently waiting for affordable housing.”
 
"This study provides more evidence of a growing crisis that demands tough decisions by elected officials called to represent all of our communities -- not just a privileged few lucky enough to have housing that is safe, accessible and affordable," said Councilwoman Margaret Chin, chair of the City Council's Committee on Aging. "One of the highest callings of the progressive movement is the commitment to caring for the most vulnerable among us. In our drive to be a more fair, equitable and just city, we cannot overlook the growing number of seniors who are still waiting for housing. We have a solemn obligation to these seniors who have contributed, and continue to contribute, so much to the life of one of the greatest cities in the world. It's my hope that this study will be a wake up call for us all that we may never forget this solemn obligation to our elders." 

"Thank you to LiveOn NY for shedding light on the extent of the housing crisis in New York City and how it disproportionately affects our seniors. It is unacceptable that as many as 44,000 seniors are currently on waiting lists for affordable housing in Community Districts 7 and 9 on the Upper West Side. My office has assisted hundreds of seniors in danger of losing their homes, which many have lived in for most of their lives, because of soaring property values and the rising cost of living overall. We must protect residents who have been the bedrock of our neighborhoods that we call home. I hope this white paper becomes a galvanizing step toward comprehensive citywide solutions that give our seniors the support they need at the moment they need it most,” said Council Member Helen Rosenthal.

“The numbers tell the story – we need to build much more affordable senior housing,” said Manhattan Borough President Gale A. Brewer. “Stable, multigenerational neighborhoods are one of the cornerstones of a healthy city – we need our seniors, and they need us. Thank you to LiveOnNY for this report and the call to action it provides.”

As the baby boomer generation ages, the city population is skewing older.  New York City’s senior population is expected to grow by 47% by 2030, with a growing percentage of seniors preferring to age in place, surrounded by the social networks and supports they have cultivated over a lifetime rather than making the often costly move to a nursing home.  These factors will combine to ensure that demand for affordable senior housing continues to grow dramatically citywide.   

The study, conducted on the Upper West Side, is part of a larger series on affordable housing that the organization has released over the past few years. In 2016, LiveOn found that 2,000 seniors were on wait lists for affordable housing in nearby Council Districts 6 and 7—with a response rate of 37%, the organization estimated that upwards of 5,406 could actually have been waiting for a spot. The average wait for affordable housing last year was seven years. 

$22.9 Million in Baselined Funding Added to DFTA for Senior Services in the Year of the Senior

YOU did it!

YOU made 2017 the Year of the Senior!  

$22.9 Million in Baselined Funding for Senior Services

What is happening?

• The final city budget was passed on June 6, 2017. LiveOn NY is thrilled to announce that the Administration/Mayor included a remarkable influx of $22.9 million of baselined funding allocated for the Department for the Aging (DFTA) programs. This is an historic addition of funding and is the most successful increase in 15 years. In addition, City Council allocated over $21 million for senior services, plus additional senior program specific funding through Schedule C allocations.

How does the city provide funding for aging service programs in the budget?

• Both the Administration and City Council allocate funding for programs in the annual budget, including funding for DFTA programs.

• When the Administration allocates funding, it is typically “baselined” meaning it remains in the budget year after year and becomes part of DFTA’s ongoing operating budget, which was approximately $346 million last year (which includes city, state and federal funding).

• City Council’s allocated funding is discretionary and is funded on a year-to-year basis.

• For many years, baselined funding for DFTA programs was stagnant, despite the exponentially growing aging population, and in some years there were cuts. These decades of underfunding resulted in growing wait lists for services, senior centers in disrepair, and no community-based safety net for older New Yorkers. This also required City Council to add one-year funding each year for many of DFTA’s core senior service programs like senior centers, case management, home care and others. While this City Council funding was so crucial and so appreciated, it was no way to build the infrastructure to support New York City’s aging population.

• That’s why LiveOn NY, along with a strong coalition of aging advocates including AARP, CaringKind, CityMeals on Wheels, Federation of Protestant Welfare Agencies (FPWA), UJA Federation New York and United Neighborhood Houses (UNH) developed a $60.6 million FY18 budget request, specifically calling u pon the Administration to baseline funding for core senior services, so that the funding will continue to build the infrastructure for DFTA programs.

How was the FY18 funding allocated? 

FY18 – YEAR OF THE SENIOR

*To see a complete list of all of FY18 City Council funding through Schedule C, click here.

What are some key highlights in the Year of the Senior?

• The $4,000,000 for Caregiving Programs is a brand new funding stream, which begins a city investment in caregivers.

• Social adult day care received an increase from FY17.

• The NYC Support our Seniors funding increased by $1,060,000 from FY17.

• The baselined funding for home care and case management is an investment to address the thousands of seniors on waitlists.

• In addition, after a very strong campaign led by the Human Services Council (HSC), the city announced additional allocations to “right size” contracts for human services organizations. According to the HSC budget statement statement, the FY18 budget included the following provisions: "$88 million to bring indirect cost reimbursement rates to 10 percent over five years, beginning with a $17.6 million investment this year; $22.7 million to support a model budget process that will address salary disparities for preventive services, senior centers, services for runaway and homeless youth, and adult protective services, with plans for additional model budget processes in fiscal years 2019 and 2020; and $90 million to fund cost-of-living adjustments for the human services workforce at a rate of 2 percent per year over the next three years remains." Council Member Helen Rosenthal was also strong advocate for these issues.

How did we make this the Year of the Senior?  It was a TEAM effort!

• Last summer, City Council Aging Chair Margaret Chin declared 2017 the Year of the Senior, setting the stage for year- long advocacy campaign. Council Member Paul Vallone, Chair of the Subcommittee on Senior Centers, also worked closely with Council Member Chin in these efforts. City Council staff members were also instrumental in this important work.

• Seniors citywide and LiveOn NY members sent an astounding total of 22,000 letters to the Mayor, Speaker and Council Members urging them to fund senior services. Click here to see a list of the organizations that took part in the letter writing campaign. Over 350 seniors also attended Advocacy Day at City Hall in May, and hundreds more also attended hearings, made calls, held events at their centers and programs and advocated year round showing the amazing momentum seniors provide to this city.

• DFTA Commissioner Donna Corrado was a strong advocate for the importance of investing in senior services across the spectrum, from senior centers, to meals, to home care, to mental health services for elder abuse victims, to case management and other programs.

• All City Council Members and staff, under the leadership of Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito and Finance Committe Chair Julissa Ferreras-Copeland, staunchly advocated for senior services in hearings and meetings in the Year of the Senior and also included the aging advocates' $60.6 million budget request in the Council Budget Response.

• Mayor de Blasio and the Administration listened to and clearly heard the importance of investing in seniors.

• The coalition of aging advocates along with LiveOn NY member agencies worked year round to advocate for this funding, holding briefings, attending hearings, holding hundreds of meeting with City Council and the Administration, press conferences and other events to talk about the incredible momentum seniors provide to the city and how important it is to invest in aging services.

What’s next?

• Today we celebrate – but our work is not done. We will continue to advocate to make each year the Year of the Senior. Stay tuned for Action Alerts and news so that you can stay involved in our efforts.

Contact Bobbie Sackman, Associate Executive Director of Public Policy at 212-398-6565 x226 or  bsackman@liveon-ny.org or or Andrea Cianfrani, Deputy Director of Public Policy at acianfrani@liveon-ny.org or 212-398-6565 X233

LiveOn NY Recognizes City Letter Writing Campaign Advocates

Year of the Senior

The following organizations and programs participated in LiveOn NY’s Year of the Senior letter writing campaign to advocate for more funding for senior services. This thank you certificate is not only on behalf of LiveOn NY but these organizations and the clients of whom your investment will impact.

Mary McLeod Bethune Senior Center

NY Foundation for Senior Citizens Mott Street Senior Center

NY Foundation for Senior Citizens Laguardia Houses

NY Foundation for Senior Citizens Dyckman Senior Center

RAICES Gowanus Senior Center

RAIN Bailey Senior Center

Ridgewood Bushwick Diana H. Jones Senior Center

Ridgewood Bushwick Senior Center

Ridgewood Bushwick Palmetto Gardens Senior Center

Ridgewood Bushwick Roudtable Senior Center

Ridgewood Older Adult Center & Services, Inc. (ROAC)

Riverdale Senior Services Center

Riverdale YM-YWHA

Polish & Slavic John Paul Friendship II Senior Center

Polish & Slavic Krakus Senior Center

Project FIND Clinton Senior Center

Project FIND Coffeehouse

Project FIND Hamilton Senior Center

Project FIND Woodstock Senior Center

Presbyterian Senior Services City Island Senior Center

Presbyterian Senior Services Davidson Senior Center

Presbyterian Senior Services Manhattanville-Riverside Senior Center

Presbyterian Senior Services Parkside Senior Center

Presbyterian Senior Services Andrew Jackson Senior Center

Queens Community House Case Management & Home Delivered Meal Programs

Queens Community House Kew Gardens

Queens Community House Pomonok Senior Center

Queens Community House Center for Gay Seniors

SelfHelp Austin Street Senior Center

Selfhelp Benjamin Rosenthal Innovative Senior Center

Selfhelp Clearview Senior Center

Selfhelp Maspeth Senior Center

Senior Citizens League of Flatbush

SHOPP Guess Neighborhood Senior Center

SNAP Brookville Senior Center

SNAP of Eastern Queens Senior Center

Stanley Isaacs Senior Center

Sunnyside Community Services

United Methodist Church Brooks Senior Center

University Settlement Neighborhood House

VISIONS Services for the Blind and Visually Impaired at Selis Manor

Wayside Tompkins Park Senior Center

WSFSSH The Center at The Red Oak

William Hodson Senior Center

Young Israel of Forest Hills Senior League

Alpha Phi Alpha Senior Citizens Center

Community Agency for Senior Citizens (CASC)

Catholic Charities Bayside Senior Center

Catholic Charities Glenwood Senior Center

Catholic Charities Howard Beach Senior Center

Catholic Charities Narrows Senior Center

Catholic Charities Northeast Queens Home Delivered Meal Program

Catholic Charities Northside Senior Center

Catholic Charities Ozone Park Senior Center

Catholic Charities Pete McGuinness Senior Center

Catholic Charities Seaside Rockaway Senior Center

Catholic Charities St. Charles Jubilee Center

Catholic Charities the Bay Senior Center

Catholic Charities the Lodge Senior Center

Catholic Charities West Brighton Senior Center

Catholic Charities Woodhaven Senior Center

COTHOA Luncheon Club

Chinese-American Planning Council Brooklyn CSI Services

DOROT, Inc.

Elmcore Youth & Adult Activities Lefrak Senior Citizens Center

Hamilton Madison City Hall Senior Center

HANAC Angelo Petromelis Senior Center

Heights and Hills Park Slope Senior Citizens Center

Henry Street Good Companions Senior Center

Henry Street Vladek NORC

Homecrest Sheepshead Bay Senior Center

Homecrest Bensonhurst Senior Center

Hope of Israel Senior Citizens Center

India Home

JASA Bay Eden Senior Center

JASA Brookdale Village Senior Center

JASA Club 76 Senior Center

JASA Cooper Park Senior Center

JASA Dreiser Senior Center

JASA Rockaway Park Senior Center

JASA Roy Reuther Senior Center

JASA Shorefront Senior Center

JASA Starrett City Senior Center

JASA Senior Alliance Senior Center

JASA Van Cortlandt Senior Center

JCC of Greater Coney Island

JCC Haber Houses Senior Center

JCC Engage

JCC of Staten Island Innovative Senior Center

JSPOA Shelton House Social Club

Lenox Hill Neighborhood House

FY18 City Budget Update: $22.8 Million in Baselined Funding for Senior Services in the Year of the Senior!!!

After spending the entire day at City Hall Friday to continue to advocate for senior services funding, LiveOn NY was on hand into the night to witness the “budget handshake” between Mayor de Blasio and City Council Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito, signaling an agreement on the FY18 City budget.

While details are still being discussed, and a final vote on the entire budget is expected this week, LiveOn NY was pleased that Mayor de Blasio and Speaker Mark-Viverito announced an influx of $22.8 million baselined dollars for senior services funding in the FY18 budget.  A City Council announcement Friday night highlighted this funding with the following graphic:      

In addition, the city announced an additional allocation of $30 million in FY18 growing to $104 million in FY22 to provide enhanced resources and support to nonprofit service providers. Again, more details will be coming soon on this allocation as well as all the funding announced at the press conference.

LiveOn NY members were a vital part of the team that advocated for this funding, having sent an amazing 21,000 letters to Mayor de Blasio, Speaker Mark-Viverito and their Council Members over the last 2 months, in addition to over 300 seniors attending Advocacy Day at City Hall in May.  This is an incredible show of strength of the aging network and older New Yorkers, and our members played an active and successful role in winning this funding.

LiveOn NY especially acknowledges the leadership of City Council Aging Committee Chair and champion Margaret Chin for her persistence and fierce advocacy, and who one year ago delcared that this would be the Year of the Senior.  LiveOn NY also thanks Mayor de Blasio, Department for the Aging (DFTA) Commissioner Donna Corrado and the City Council under the leadership of Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito, Finance Chair Julissa Ferreras-Copeland and Subcommittee on Senior Centers Chair Paul Vallone. Led by Council Members Chin and Vallone, the entire City Council was instrumental in making this the Year of the Senior.

As always, we will need to gather more specifics on this funding to understand how it will be implemented, but LiveOn NY views this announcement as an important recognition of both the need for funding to allow seniors to thrive in their communities, as well as an understanding of the work senior service agencies do to make New York a better place to age.  LiveOn NY will be gathering further details and will keep you apprised of specifics in the upcoming months.

Thank you for your partnership in advocacy and being part of this important work.

Mayor Bill de Blasio, City Council Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito and City Council Members at budget handshake Press Conference on June 2, 2017.

For more information, contact Bobbie Sackman, Associate Executive Director of Public Policy at  bsackman@liveon-ny.org or 212-398-6565 X226 or Andrea Cianfrani, Deputy Director of Public Policy at acianfrani@liveon-ny.org or 212-398-6565 X233.