Urge Governor Cuomo to support the $1 million funding increase to Independent Living Centers as proposed by both the Senate and Assembly in final budget negotiations!
Thanks to all your hard work, the legislature included a $1 million increase for ILCs across the State in their one house budget proposals. While this is not the $5 million requested by the Board of Regents, it is a good start in addressing the funding crisis for ILCs. The Senate, Assembly, and the Governor are now negotiating a final budget proposal, which is set to be passed by April 1st. We are running out of time to make sure that ILCs receive the $1 million increase! Call Governor Cuomo today and urge him to support including the increase in final budget negotiations!
ACTION:
Call Governor Cuomo today at 518-474-8390 and urge him to support the $1 million increase to Independent Living Centers as proposed by the Senate and Assembly.
Rather than leaving a message, press #3 to ask to speak to an assistant. You will be asked to give your name and your zip code.
Background:
ILCs provide critical services to people with disabilities all designed to assist them in navigating the ever-changing service system in order to live independent, fully integrated lives in the community. As the State continues to redesign health care in ways that are intended to increase quality and decrease costs, ILCs play a crucial role. ILCs provide a wide range of services based on the local needs, all of which are aimed at addressing the social determinants of health: education, employment, housing, social skills.
ILCs have been woefully underfunded for the past twelve years while the cost of doing business has increased dramatically, creating a crisis for centers and the people with disabilities they serve. In 2015/2016, the state's network of ILCs served 103,573 people with disabilities, family members and others; an increase of more than 20,000 in just five years. This demonstrates the pressing need for IL services in communities, and the number served would likely be higher had the IL funding kept up with the capacity needs of centers.
Furthermore, investing in ILCs saves the State money. Data from the New York State Education Department, ACCES-VR, show that the work of ILCs to transition and divert people with disabilities from costly institutional placements saved the State more than $2.3 billion since 2001 as a result of avoided institutional care. ILC transition and diversion activities save the State more than $9 in institutionalization costs for every state dollar invested in ILCs.
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