Senator Carlucci Asks Cuomo to Reduce Five Percent Cut to Disability Office

Rockland and Orange county are home to many non-profit organizations that provide an array of services to those with developmental disabilities. With budget cuts popping up everywhere, even non-profits like these are looking at future cuts themselves.

Senator David Carlucci, D-New City, is fighting against this and at yesterday’s rally, he called out Governor Andrew Cuomo asking that funding be restored to the Office for People with Developmental Disabilities (OPWDD) 2011-2012 budget.

OPWDD programs are looking at a 4-5 percent cut in their 2011-2012 budget. The Federal share and the cuts at the Medicaid Redesign table increase this cut causing workers to be laid off, and services to be reduced or closed.

“This is an 11^th-hour plea to restore this vital funding for our most vulnerable New Yorkers,” said Carlucci. “People with developmental disabilities deserve to have quality care. These are our neighbors who cannot defend themselves, nor speak out for themselves and rely on us to make sure they are safe and their basic needs are taken care of. I will fight for this funding to be restored because they cannot fight for themselves.”

After Cuomo asked for a 5 percent budget cut for OPWDD, Carlucci helped pass a resolution in the Senate to reinstate 3 percent of the budget and he’s asking his colleagues in the assembly to agree to this resolution.

“This isn’t about trimming bloated salaries. It’s about keeping vital services to people who need it most,” he said. “An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. Unfortunately, if this doesn’t get fixed, our taxpayers will be paying for this in the long run.”

Although the Senate restored these cuts in their budget resolution Cuomo has not considered putting these restorations in the final budget at this time.

With cuts at the Medicaid Redesign table affecting the OPWDD cuts, one way to provide public participation is through the State's new Medicaid Redesign Web site. Launched earlier this year in January, this website will track the progress of reforming New York's costly Medicaid system, and to invite the public to give input into this process via electronic forms for Medicaid stakeholders and the public. Reform suggestions can be submitted through these e-forms and the web site will also include listings of the Team's public hearings and prepared reports.

"It is imperative for the public, as well as stakeholders and government officials, to be part of the process of reforming the State's Medicaid system, and this Web site will help make that happen," Governor Cuomo said. "The Web site will be a component to developing our plan to reign in Medicaid costs without compromising care."

Despite the drizzle and cold, supporters came out for the rally, including representatives from Camp Venture, Jawonio and the ARC of Rockland.

"We need to be more efficient and we are discussing collaborating more and consolidating wherever feasible,” said Jill Warner, CEO of Jawonio. “We can sustain a 2 or 3 percent cut, but 4 or 5 percent plus the Medicaid Redesign Team’s additional 2 percent will just cause needed programs to serve less and possibly put some programs out of business completely.  Cuts for the sake of cuts will not help build lives of people- it will add to the need for the state operations to provide needed services."

“We’re now serving people 24/7. We don’t want to send people back to getting services from the state, because then the services are not personalized to an individual’s needs,” said Karyl Caplan, Executive Director of ARC of Rockland. “We don’t want to let that happen.”

“We’re out here trying to maintain our services. We know New York State is under a burden and we’re working together to try to resolve this,” said Warner. “We’re willing to take 2 percent out like the other unions.”

Carlucci met with the Joint  Conference Subcommittee on Mental Health later in the afternoon on Monday to “hammer things out.”

Carlucci and the other members of the Independent Democratic Conference (IDC) sent a letter to Cuomo respectfully urging him to restore these funds to the budget during the final negotiations.

“New York should not be balancing its budget on the backs of our most vulnerable citizens,” said Assemblywoman Nancy Calhoun. “We must restore funding to the OPWDD in this 2011-2012 budget to ensure New Yorkers with developmental disabilities are receiving quality care.”

"New Yorkers with Developmental Disabilities and their Families ask Governor Cuomo to keep the promise that he and every Governor back to Governor Carey made to ensure care of New York State's most vulnerable individuals,” said Barbara Crosier, VP Government Relations of Cerebral Palsy Associations NYS.

Last December, a Facebook page was created to combat this very issue and ask citizens to write to elected officials:

“In the next few months we will be confronting perhaps the largest budget cuts in our history. We must fight that.  To the extent that cuts cannot be avoided, it is imperative that they be guided by the expertise of an intact OPWDD. OPWDD services have already been cut to the bone and cannot withstand additional substantial cuts,” according to the Facebook page.

Page Creator Saratoga Bridges of NYSARC inc. asks for citizens to contact Cuomo and other elected officials to prevent budget cuts to OPWDD.

“Tell Governor-Elect and your Assembly member and Senator that large cuts will devastate our services, cause a massive loss of jobs in local legislative districts and endanger the health and safety of our extremely vulnerable population,” she says. “Tell them that a separate, intact Office for People with Developmental Disabilities (OPWDD) must be preserved. Only OPWDD has the expertise to responsibly achieve efficiencies while protecting our critical services.” 

Many other health organizations, such as HeartShare, are also asking citizens to write to Cuomo about preventing further budget cuts to OPWDD.