<div dir="ltr"><div><p class="gmail-large-first-letter" style="box-sizing:border-box;margin:0px 0px 19.2px;line-height:1.5"><font style="" face="arial, sans-serif" color="#000000">The Legal Aid Society and Katz Banks Kumin LLP have filed a <a href="https://legalaidnyc.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/1-Complaint.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener" style="background-color:rgba(0,0,0,0);box-sizing:border-box;text-decoration-line:none;display:inline">lawsuit</a> on behalf of an individual plaintiff and tens of thousands of home care workers against Public Partnerships, LLC (PPL), the newly contracted statewide intermediary for New York\u2019s Consumer Directed Personal Assistance Program (CDPAP).</font></p><p style="box-sizing:border-box;margin:0px 0px 19.2px"><font face="arial, sans-serif" color="#000000"><span style="box-sizing:border-box">This litigation seeks to hold PPL accountable for its widespread failure to pay personal care assistants accurately, on time \u2014 or at all \u2014 since assuming its new role. </span><span style="box-sizing:border-box">These failures are not isolated but systemic, stemming from PPL\u2019s fundamentally broken infrastructure for onboarding workers, tracking time, approving wages, and processing payroll. </span></font></p><p style="box-sizing:border-box;margin:0px 0px 19.2px"><font face="arial, sans-serif" color="#000000">CDPAP is a New York State Medicaid program that empowers older adults and people with disabilities to hire, train, and manage their own home care workers \u2014 often trusted family members, friends, or neighbors. The program enables individuals to receive essential care in their homes and communities, allowing them to continue living independently.</font></p><p style="box-sizing:border-box;margin:0px 0px 19.2px"><font face="arial, sans-serif" color="#000000">The lead plaintiff in the case is Philip Calderon, a 24-year-old Staten Island native who works as a personal assistant for his father. Calderon\u2019s father, who suffers from severe arthritis and requires significant assistance with daily activities, relies on his son\u2019s care to live safely and independently at home.</font></p><p style="box-sizing:border-box;margin:0px 0px 19.2px"><font face="arial, sans-serif" color="#000000">Despite continuing to work full-time since April 1, Calderon has not received any wages from PPL. His experience reflects the broader systemic failures that have left thousands of home care workers uncompensated and put vulnerable New Yorkers at risk.</font></p><p style="box-sizing:border-box;margin:0px 0px 19.2px"><font face="arial, sans-serif" color="#000000">\u201cPPL must be held fully accountable for leaving tens of thousands of hardworking caregivers, who provide critical support for family members and neighbors, without pay for weeks, violating state and federal wage laws,\u201d said Michael Diller, an attorney with Legal Aid\u2019s <a href="https://legalaidnyc.org/programs-projects-units/employment-law-unit/" style="background-color:rgba(0,0,0,0);box-sizing:border-box;text-decoration-line:none;display:inline">Employment Law Unit</a>. \u201cNo caregiver should ever have to choose between caring for a loved one and being able to afford rent or groceries.\u201d</font></p><p style="box-sizing:border-box;margin:0px"><font face="arial, sans-serif" color="#000000">If you are a PPL personal care assistant who has not been paid on time \u2014 or at all, please <a href="https://legalaid.nyc/PA-Survey." target="_blank" rel="noopener" style="background-color:rgba(0,0,0,0);box-sizing:border-box;text-decoration-line:none;display:inline">fill out this survey</a> so that we can learn more about the problems people are having.</font></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="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">(518) 813-9537 ext 1</span></p></span></div></div></div></div>