<div dir="ltr"><div><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:12pt;margin-bottom:12pt"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Arial,sans-serif;color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-weight:700;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;vertical-align:baseline">New York forges ahead with CDPAP transition despite TRO</span><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Arial,sans-serif;color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-weight:700;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;vertical-align:baseline"><br></span><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Arial,sans-serif;color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;vertical-align:baseline">By Katelyn Cordero</span><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Arial,sans-serif;color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;vertical-align:baseline"><br></span><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Arial,sans-serif;color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;vertical-align:baseline">04/01/2025 06:16 PM EDT</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:12pt;margin-bottom:12pt"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Arial,sans-serif;color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;vertical-align:baseline">ALBANY, New York \u2014 Public Partnerships LLC was slated to take over New York&#39;s consumer-directed personal assistance program Tuesday, but put that transition on hold and is now triggering confusion among program participants following a temporary restraining order.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:12pt;margin-bottom:12pt"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Arial,sans-serif;color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;vertical-align:baseline">The order, issued Monday by Judge Frederic Block, locks in a three-day delay against the state Health Department to consolidate the state&#39;s popular Medicaid program, known as CDPAP. It also allows Public Partnerships to continue registering and processing applications and bars the state from \u201cdisallowing other fiscal intermediaries from servicing those CDPAP participants who have not yet registered with PPL.\u201d</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:12pt;margin-bottom:12pt"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Arial,sans-serif;color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;vertical-align:baseline">Elizabeth Jois, an attorney representing consumers in the federal litigation against the state, told POLITICO on Tuesday she&#39;s received a near-constant stream of calls from workers confused about where their next paycheck will come from and how they should track their time.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:12pt;margin-bottom:12pt"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Arial,sans-serif;color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;vertical-align:baseline">\u201cWe believe that Judge Block intended that no one should go without care this week,\u201d Jois said. \u201cMy voicemail is clogged with people that cannot log in today, that cannot clock their time in PPL&#39;s system.\u201d</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:12pt;margin-bottom:12pt"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Arial,sans-serif;color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;vertical-align:baseline">Jois and the plaintiffs she represents have requested Block approve a six-month delay for the transition plan&#39;s implementation, but Block said Monday he&#39;d need more time to decide on how to proceed.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:12pt;margin-bottom:12pt"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Arial,sans-serif;color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-weight:700;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;vertical-align:baseline">Context:</span><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Arial,sans-serif;color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;vertical-align:baseline"> A group of consumers and independent living centers filed suit Thursday demanding a six-month delay to the program&#39;s transition to a new administrative system. The state was set to transition from 600-some fiscal intermediaries that run administrative tasks for program participants to one on Tuesday. Block&#39;s order has put that on hold until at least Friday.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:12pt;margin-bottom:12pt"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Arial,sans-serif;color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;vertical-align:baseline">But the state is calling the effectiveness of that order into question. During the hearing, the state&#39;s legal team argued they couldn&#39;t allow fiscal intermediaries to continue to operate because they already terminated their ability to authorize payroll for the program.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:12pt;margin-bottom:12pt"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Arial,sans-serif;color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;vertical-align:baseline">A state Department of Health spokesperson said the court order \u201cdoes not stop the transition\u201d and does not apply to the 200,000 consumers that have already registered with the system or their workers. The agency said the order only applied to individuals who are not registered with the new administrative system.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:12pt;margin-bottom:12pt"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Arial,sans-serif;color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;vertical-align:baseline">\u201cMake no mistake \u2014 starting today, Public Partnerships LLC is the statewide fiscal intermediary for CDPAP, and despite ongoing efforts by hundreds of middlemen who have bloated the program for many years, hundreds of thousands of New Yorkers have listened to the facts and taken the necessary steps to ensure continuation of their home care services,\u201d State Health Commissioner James McDonald said in a statement. \u201cThis is a limited order and for the vast majority of consumers and workers in the CDPAP program, nothing changes.\u201d</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:12pt;margin-bottom:12pt"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Arial,sans-serif;color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;vertical-align:baseline">The department also continued its campaign against alleged misinformation by fiscal intermediaries, claiming that some of the fiscal service agencies are spreading falsehoods about the court order&#39;s impact.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:12pt;margin-bottom:12pt"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Arial,sans-serif;color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;vertical-align:baseline">The Health Department said the order \u201cdoes not pause\u201d the state&#39;s transition, appearing to contradict a message on Public Partnerships&#39; website that says the order is \u201cpausing certain elements\u201d of the transition.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:12pt;margin-bottom:12pt"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Arial,sans-serif;color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;vertical-align:baseline">Both the state and Public Partnerships say the order does not impact consumers who have already started their applications and does not prevent CDPAP participants from continuing to register with the company. The state did not answer questions regarding how individuals who are not registered with Public Partnership will get paid this week.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:12pt;margin-bottom:12pt"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Arial,sans-serif;color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;vertical-align:baseline">In addition to the confusion caused by Block&#39;s order, workers who have already registered with PPL are reporting issues with the fiscal services company&#39;s timekeeping system. After the Monday hearing, consumers and workers from across the state who were tuning in virtually cheered the order, but many said they remain uncertain about how to get paid this week.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:12pt;margin-bottom:12pt"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Arial,sans-serif;color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;vertical-align:baseline">A spokesperson for the company told POLITICO that 190,000 personal assistants have access to Public Partnerships&#39; in-house Time4Care app to track their time and that 60,000 participants have successfully logged into the app. The state reported that roughly 65,000 workers have logged hours with the new system that launched Tuesday.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:12pt;margin-bottom:12pt"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Arial,sans-serif;color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;vertical-align:baseline">According to a payment schedule listed on Public Partnerships&#39; website, the pay period for this week started Sunday, which suggests that between 125,000 and 130,000 personal assistants have yet to log their time for the first three days of the period. Workers are due to receive their first paycheck on April 10.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:12pt;margin-bottom:12pt"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Arial,sans-serif;color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;vertical-align:baseline">\u201cWe have not seen broadscale issues of personal assistants not being able to track their time,\u201d Public Partnerships spokesperson Lacey Hautzinger said in a statement to POLITICO. \u201cIf a personal assistant is experiencing issues, they can call PPL&#39;s call center for support and time tracking options or manually track their time and enter it into Time4Care once they are able to access the app.\u201d</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:12pt;margin-bottom:12pt"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Arial,sans-serif;color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-weight:700;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;vertical-align:baseline">What&#39;s next:</span><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Arial,sans-serif;color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;vertical-align:baseline"> Senate Health Committee Chair Gustavo Rivera said Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins has discussed concerns surrounding the deadline with her conference, but Hochul and Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie continue to hold the line on the state&#39;s deadline.</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:12pt;margin-bottom:12pt"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Arial,sans-serif;color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;vertical-align:baseline">Rivera called the Hochul administration \u201cboneheaded\u201d for its rollout of the transition and described the state&#39;s interpretation of Monday&#39;s restraining order as \u201ccute.\u201d</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:12pt;margin-bottom:12pt"><span style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Arial,sans-serif;color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-variant-numeric:normal;font-variant-east-asian:normal;font-variant-alternates:normal;vertical-align:baseline">\u201cAs far as they&#39;re concerned, everything is hunky-dory,\u201d Rivera said of the Hochul administration&#39;s response to the order. \u201cThe horror stories that you will hear in the next hours and days from people who in good faith tried to make the transition \u2014 and were unable to from things that were out of their control \u2014 will have to do with the rushed rollout, and will be at the fault of the governor and this administration.\u201d</span></p></div><div><br></div><span class="gmail_signature_prefix">-- </span><br><div dir="ltr" class="gmail_signature" data-smartmail="gmail_signature"><div dir="ltr"><div style="color:rgb(34,34,34)"><span><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-family:Arial,sans-serif;background-color:transparent;font-weight:700;vertical-align:baseline">Laura Cardwell</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-family:Arial,sans-serif;background-color:transparent;vertical-align:baseline">Director of Operations &amp; Events</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-family:Arial,sans-serif;color:rgb(121,1,1);background-color:transparent;font-weight:700;vertical-align:baseline">CDPAANYS</span><span style="font-family:Arial,sans-serif;color:rgb(0,0,0);background-color:transparent;font-weight:700;vertical-align:baseline">/</span><span style="font-family:Arial,sans-serif;color:rgb(0,167,181);background-color:transparent;font-weight:700;vertical-align:baseline">CDANY</span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height:1.38;margin-top:0pt;margin-bottom:0pt"><span style="font-family:Arial,sans-serif;background-color:transparent;vertical-align:baseline">she/her/hers</span></p><p dir="l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