 |
 |
 |
Sean Delaney went to Washington D.C. to open the eyes of our Congressional leaders and to share stories of life as a Direct Support Professional serving people with developmental disabilities. Please watch Sean's music video, "Open Your Eyes" and share it with everyone you know, help tell their story.
|
|
|
Upcoming Events
BUILDING A VISION FOR COMMUNITYJuly 11, 2008 Join us for an exciting day and a half conference to explore the impact of community and social capital.
July 10 & 11, 2008
The Saratoga Hilton
534 Broadway
Saratoga Springs NY
|
|
Thursday, 20 March 2008 |
· NEW GOVERNOR PATERSON TAKES OFFICE
· NYS BUDGET CONFERENCE COMMITTEES TO BEGIN
· MEDPAC MULLS IMPROVEMENTS TO MEDICARE DRUG COVERAGE
|
|
|
NYSACRA News & Views
|
|
Issue No. 10-08
|
March 19, 2008
|
|
|
Open Your Eyes! Watch it Now!
|
NYSACRA Calendar
Executive Positions
Action Center
|
| |
Greetings NYSACRA Members!
|
| |
| |
| |
|
· NEW GOVERNOR PATERSON TAKES OFFICE
|
| |
Following the tumultuous past week of events, former Lt. Governor David Paterson ascended to the Governorship upon his being sworn in on Monday, March 17, 2008. For those who may have been hiking in the Andes or vacationing in some other far flung corner of the world, this follows the resignation of former Governor Eliot Spitzer for a series of sordid misdeeds, starting with a prostitute and perhaps including money laundering and related felony charges, although, no charges have yet been filed.
NYSACRA wishes Governor Paterson great success amid New York State's current fiscal crisis and recession. We hope and anticipate that he will maintain the Senate and Assembly restoration of the $5 million cut. For now, there appear to be no changes in staff that affect our field.
Governor Paterson is unique in many ways; most notably he is the first African-American Governor of New York, and the first legally blind governor. The Albany Times Union did a very nice article on the Governor along with our good friends David Liscomb, LaRenz Pickens and Chester Finn from the Self- Advocacy Association. Please Click Here for a link to this article.
|
| |
|
| |
|
· NYS BUDGET CONFERENCE COMMITTEES TO BEGIN
|
| |
Starting Wednesday, March 26, 2008, the NYS Senate and Assembly will convene their Budget Conference Committees, including the Mental Hygiene Committee. These committees will decide what, if anything, will be added or subtracted from the Governor's Executive Budget, which it was just announced will need to be cut by an additional $800 million before discussions begin. The total NYS Budget is over $124 billion. |
| |
|
| |
|
· MEDPAC MULLS IMPROVEMENTS TO MEDICARE DRUG COVERAGE
|
| |
According to Medicare Watch, published by the Medicare Rights center, Medicare Part D drug plans should provide detailed information to pharmacies when they reject coverage of a prescription drug, and the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) should investigate whether plan enrollees are receiving drugs or alternatives in a timely fashion, according to recent draft recommendations discussed by the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MedPAC) on March 5-6.
CMS should require Medicare private drug plans to provide the grounds for coverage denials and information on covered alternatives to pharmacies when denying coverage for plan enrollees, according to a draft recommendation that MedPAC will likely endorse officially later in the year.
Commission members also support a recommendation that CMS implements measures that would calculate whether drug plan enrollees are receiving medications or covered alternatives "without undue delay."
|
| |
|
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
