Early Intervention CUTS are Coming…TAKE ACTION HERE and NOW!!
Dear Friends of Early Intervention.
We have Terrible News for EI and we must STOP these devastating proposals from Albany:
(1) Autism Therapy sessions will be RESTRICTED to One ABA session per day,
(2) Rates will be CUT for telehealth by as much as 42%, and
(3) EI Developmental Group Size will be REDUCED to 6 children.
In the remaining weeks of March, the Governor and New York State Legislature will be negotiating the enacted budget for the next State Fiscal Year.
The Governor’s Executive Budget proposed only a 5% increase in the reimbursement rates for the Early Intervention Program, which is too small to help stem the loss of therapists to other service systems. Over 7,500 children are currently waiting for services in the program, and the NYS Comptroller’s report found that 51% of children in EI are not getting all of the services they are entitled to. The EI rates of payment are less in 2024 than they were in 2009. Because of this, nearly two thousand therapists and dozens of agencies have left the program. The U.S. Department of Education also JUST issued a deeply concerning report to New York’s Early Intervention Program finding that “the State is unable to ensure that early intervention services appropriate early intervention services are available to all infants and toddlers” as required under federal regulations.
Some good news is that the NYS Assembly included an 11% increase in reimbursement in its One House Budget Resolution that was released last week. However, the Senate did NOT make any changes to the Governor’s proposal! New York State leaders recently agreed that there is an additional $1.3 billion available in revenue to spend in the new fiscal year. They need to hear from you that fully funding an 11% increase in Early Intervention rates should be a TOP PRIORITY as well as eliminating the Governor’s three devastating proposed cuts that are obviously harmful to children and therapist capacity.
TAKE ACTION HERE to send email messages to the Governor, key State Assembly Members and Senators urging them to act before it’s too late.
THE GOVERNOR AND LEGISLATORS NEED TO HEAR FROM YOU ASAP!
Early Intervention CUTS are Coming…TAKE ACTION HERE and NOW!!
Dear Friends of Early Intervention.
We have Terrible News for EI and we must STOP these devastating proposals from Albany:
(1) Autism Therapy sessions will be RESTRICTED to One ABA session per day,
(2) Rates will be CUT for telehealth by as much as 42%, and
(3) EI Developmental Group Size will be REDUCED to 6 children.
In the remaining weeks of March, the Governor and New York State Legislature will be negotiating the enacted budget for the next State Fiscal Year.
The Governor’s Executive Budget proposed only a 5% increase in the reimbursement rates for the Early Intervention Program, which is too small to help stem the loss of therapists to other service systems. Over 7,500 children are currently waiting for services in the program, and the NYS Comptroller’s report found that 51% of children in EI are not getting all of the services they are entitled to. The EI rates of payment are less in 2024 than they were in 2009. Because of this, nearly two thousand therapists and dozens of agencies have left the program. The U.S. Department of Education also JUST issued a deeply concerning report to New York’s Early Intervention Program finding that “the State is unable to ensure that early intervention services appropriate early intervention services are available to all infants and toddlers” as required under federal regulations.
Some good news is that the NYS Assembly included an 11% increase in reimbursement in its One House Budget Resolution that was released last week. However, the Senate did NOT make any changes to the Governor’s proposal! New York State leaders recently agreed that there is an additional $1.3 billion available in revenue to spend in the new fiscal year. They need to hear from you that fully funding an 11% increase in Early Intervention rates should be a TOP PRIORITY as well as eliminating the Governor’s three devastating proposed cuts that are obviously harmful to children and therapist capacity.
TAKE ACTION HERE to send email messages to the Governor, key State Assembly Members and Senators urging them to act before it’s too late.
THE GOVERNOR AND LEGISLATORS NEED TO HEAR FROM YOU ASAP!