BUFFALO, N.Y. — Home care advocates marched from Canalside to the Governor's Buffalo office today to deliver letters, protesting her new plan for the state's Consumer Directed Personal Assistance Program.
Governor Kathy Hochul announced on Tuesday that the state will contract a statewide partner, Public Partnerships LLC(PPL), to oversee four separate organizations that will each provide care for different regions of the state. In a press release, Hochul said, "Our plan will deliver a stronger CDPAP and leverage a diverse, statewide partnership to ensure the high-quality, personalized care that New Yorkers need,". They also said that it will help protect users and providers from agencies that misuse funds and don't provide adequate care.
Protesters today said that this plan will take choice away from those using home care. Renee Christian said that because of this she has no choice, and neither do those providing her care. Christian said, "I should be able to choose what agency I want to work with, but if there's only one then that's no choice. Having the ability for workers to choose what agency provides the best benefits for their needs,". She is worried that if she doesn't like the agency assigned to Buffalo, Angels in Your Home, then she would be forced to move into assisted living or a nursing home, where she would no longer be able to take care of her daughter. "Home care is really important to me because it allows me to stay in my home, to stay in my community, to be a valued member of my community," Christian said.
Steven Pehta is the director of business development for Trusted Choice Homecare, he said that transferring to PPL will also take the hometown personal understanding out of home care. "We are talking about stripping folks from agencies who were born and raised in their cities, are agencies in Buffalo," Pehta said, "Home care is a personal business alright, these are people who need help with the most intimate of tasks and they should have the ability to choose not only their caregivers but also what agency is providing those services for them,".