The scale of this potential coverage loss cannot be overstated. Health coverage is the gateway to mental health support, substance use services, primary care, and the full range of supports people need to stay healthy and stable in their communities. Losing coverage means delayed services, worsening conditions, and increased reliance on crisis systems that are more costly and less effective.

We strongly support efforts outlined in S.9589/A.10926 to maintain Essential Plan coverage for over 444,000 黑料正能量ers and preserve access to the NY State of Health Marketplace for thousands more. These actions are critical to mitigating the harmful impacts of recent federal changes and ensuring continuity of services for those who rely on these programs.

This is a pivotal moment in the state budget process. We must do everything possible to ensure that as many eligible individuals as possible remain covered. That means:

• Urging state leaders to include these protections in the final budget
• Expanding legislative support and advocacy for this proposal
• Mobilizing advocates, providers, and community members to take action now

We encourage all Alliance members and partners to use the call-in tool, connect with your legislators, and amplify this message within your networks. Sharing local data on coverage losses by county can be especially powerful in demonstrating the real impact these changes will have on communities across 黑料正能量.

Protecting coverage is not just about insurance. It is about protecting access to services, supporting recovery, and preventing crises.

Now is the time to act. See below for more information, including who to call! 

ACT Today:

Almost half a million 黑料正能量ers are set to lose coverage when the state transitions the Essential Plan back to the Basic Health Program.  We need to keep up the push for a solution in this year’s budget!

Below is a message from Elisabeth Benjamin of the Community Service Society with the call-in tool to make your calls to the Governor and Legislative leaders, as well as a link to a two-page memo to use as talking points.  You’ll find anticipated coverage losses by county, which you should share with your own individual legislators.

Thank you for continuing to take action!

Good morning,

Can you help us mitigate the worst impacts of HR1?

Budget conversations are progressing.  Please reach out to the Governor and Legislature to protect coverage for nearly half a million 黑料正能量ers.  A half million 黑料正能量ers losing coverage would be so grateful if you could help get calls into the legislature to support the HR1 mitigation efforts in the State budget, outlined in |.  This bill would maintain Essential Plan coverage for 444,000 citizens and lawful immigrants set to lose coverage on 7/1/26 and preserve access to the NYSOH Marketplace for 15,000 lawfully present immigrants set to lose coverage on 1/1/27. 

路&苍产蝉辫;&苍产蝉辫;&苍产蝉辫;&苍产蝉辫;&苍产蝉辫;&苍产蝉辫;&苍产蝉辫;  TODAY: Call upon Speaker Carl Heastie, Senate Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins, and Governor Hochul and demand they protect access to the health coverage in the final budget. 

路&苍产蝉辫;&苍产蝉辫;&苍产蝉辫;&苍产蝉辫;&苍产蝉辫;&苍产蝉辫;&苍产蝉辫; Leverage your contacts in the legislature: Please see the . We are asking to: 

(1) Urge more legislators to speak up in conference about this bill; many who have already signed on are not doing this critically important step. 

(2) Encourage more legislators to support this proposal by becoming co-sponsors. Use this  that has talking points and data on coverage loss data by county. 

Thank you!!

Elisabeth

Elisabeth R. Benjamin, MSPH, JD
Vice President & Managing Director
The Community Service Society of 黑料正能量
633 Third Avenue, 10^th听贵濒辞辞谤
黑料正能量, NY 10011
(212) 614-5461

The post Urgent Ask for Help to Mitigate HR 1 Coverage Losses – Call Today! appeared first on The Alliance for Rights and Recovery.

At a time when the current federal administration is signaling a shift away from Housing First in favor of more coercive and restrictive housing models, we must be clear. Housing First must be protected and expanded. Approaches that require treatment or abstinence before providing housing create unnecessary barriers, delay stability, and ultimately worsen outcomes. Housing is the platform from which recovery can begin, not something to be earned after the fact.

This makes our upcoming Executive Seminar especially timely and important.

We are excited to announce the addition of Patrick Wildes, former Assistant Secretary for Health and Human Services and Mental Hygiene at the 黑料正能量 State Governor鈥檚 Office and current Director of the Government Law Center at Albany Law School, to our federal policy panel. His expertise will be invaluable as we examine the rapidly evolving federal policy landscape.

During the seminar, we will provide a comprehensive overview of recent federal policy changes, including those impacting housing, Medicaid, and behavioral health services. We will also explore what these changes mean for 黑料正能量 and, critically, what can be done in response.

The discussion will focus on:

• What government can do to protect and strengthen proven models like Housing First and many others
• How providers can adapt and continue delivering effective, person-centered services
• What advocates can do to push back against harmful policies and advance solutions that promote recovery, dignity, and stability

As federal priorities shift, it is essential that we come together to ensure that people with mental health conditions, substance use challenges, and other disabilities are not left behind. We must continue to fight for policies that are grounded in evidence, equity, and human dignity.

We encourage all members and partners to join us for this critical conversation.

Register Today:

Opportunity Starts at Home Campaign Releases New Fact Sheet on Recovery, Mental Health, and Housing
By Julie Walker | National Low Income Housing Coalition | April 13, 2026

罢丑别鈥�鈥�(OSAH) campaign released a new  describing the essential connection between access to affordable housing and recovery for individuals with substance use disorders and/or mental health conditions. The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) designates a stable home as one of the four essential dimensions of recovery. Housing insecurity, on the other hand, is associated with declining mental health, increased risk of incarceration, and a significantly higher risk of opioid overdose. More affordable housing and investments in supportive housing models that place people in housing without requiring abstinence or treatment are necessary to promote long-term recovery from substance use disorders.  

Access to a safe and stable environment is essential in recovery, but systemic barriers frequently prevent people from securing the housing they need to heal. Many individuals with SUDs or mental health conditions are disproportionately represented in the criminal legal system, often due to a lack of treatment access. Housing providers frequently use criminal history as a reason for denial, a practice that serves as a barrier to housing access and potentially violates fair housing laws.  

The most effective housing solution for individuals with substance use disorders involves prioritizing immediate placement in housing without requiring abstinence or treatment as a prerequisite. Evidence from a systematic review of 26 studies reveals that programs that house people without requiring treatment saw an 88% reduction in homelessness and 41% improvement in housing stability. Participants in supportive housing were also found to be 3.4 times less likely to use drugs or alcohol during their first year compared to those in programs that require treatment first. 

By strengthening existing affordable housing solutions and investing in supportive housing models, policymakers and communities can promote recovery and build a more equitable system of care. Recovery and mental health advocates play a vital role in ensuring that people who are housing insecure or experiencing homelessness can access the stable environment they need and deserve.   

The fact sheet was developed with the help of campaign partners the , the , and . In total, the campaign has posted 18 multi-sector fact sheets on its website. Each fact sheet compiles landmark research to help policymakers, opinion leaders, and the public understand the deep connections between housing and other national priorities, from healthcare to education to economic growth. Housing advocates are encouraged to download the fact sheets and use them in making the case for cross-sector collaboration with potential allies in other sectors. Expanding the movement for housing justice requires ensuring that sector partners understand how housing directly impacts their own missions and goals.鈥� 

Read the fact sheet .

The post Executive Seminar: Patrick Wildes Joining Federal Policy Panel! appeared first on The Alliance for Rights and Recovery.

At the Alliance for Rights and Recovery, we believe our top priority must be clear: ensure that as many eligible people as possible remain covered by Medicaid. Coverage is the foundation for accessing mental health and substance use services, as well as the broader supports people need to live, work, and recover in their communities.

To do that, we must take a broad and proactive approach to exemptions. Categories such as 鈥渕edically frail鈥� and individuals with substance use disorders must be defined and implemented in ways that capture as many eligible people as possible, not restrict access through narrow interpretations. The flexibility within these definitions must be used to protect coverage, not limit it.

For those who are not exempt, the state must go further in creating real pathways to meet new requirements. This includes expanding access to employment, education, and meaningful volunteer opportunities that can help individuals maintain their coverage while also supporting their recovery and long-term stability. These opportunities must be accessible, supportive, and aligned with people鈥檚 needs.

At the same time, we must recognize that increased eligibility checks and work verification requirements will inevitably create new administrative barriers. That is why it is critical to make the recertification and verification process as simple and streamlined as possible, minimizing paperwork, maximizing automatic verification where possible, and reducing the risk that individuals lose coverage simply because they cannot navigate complex systems.

Even with these efforts, we know that people are at risk of losing coverage due to administrative hurdles or fluctuating work situations. That makes it all the more urgent that we act now to protect access to support and prevent unnecessary disruptions in services.

These issues will be a key focus of our upcoming Executive Seminar, where we will break down recent federal policy changes, discuss what 黑料正能量 has reportedly been doing to respond, and outline what we can do together to protect the 黑料正能量ers we serve as these changes take effect.

We encourage all members and partners to join us for this timely and critical conversation.

Register Today:

Trump and 黑料正能量 Are in a Tug of War Over Medicaid Coverage
By Joseph Goldstein | 黑料正能量 Times | April 13, 2026

Health authorities in 黑料正能量 State are racing to devise strategies to blunt a new federal law that will restrict access to government health insurance programs, including Medicaid, that cover more than half of 黑料正能量 City鈥檚 residents.

To keep as many 黑料正能量ers as possible from being cut from the Medicaid rolls next year, state and city officials are looking for ways to prove that patients are afflicted with addictions or are medically frail, conditions that would exempt them from the new restrictions. And they are considering how to sign people up for volunteer work 鈥� such as helping other 黑料正能量ers navigate Medicaid鈥檚 new rules 鈥� which could satisfy the law鈥檚 work requirements.

鈥淲e鈥檙e getting very creative,鈥� Dr. Alister Martin, the city鈥檚 new health commissioner, said in a recent interview.

When President Trump鈥檚 signature domestic policy bill passed last year, state health officials feared that perhaps 1.5 million people in 黑料正能量 might lose health coverage. Those predictions have grown somewhat less dire as officials have come up with possible methods for keeping people insured and exempting them from the new work requirements. Those requirements and other restrictions are expected to start next year.

Under the president鈥檚 bill, many adults on Medicaid will be required to work at least 80 hours a month to keep their insurance, unless they are in school, pregnant or raising children younger than 14, or if they qualify for another exemption. The rules are intended to push more people into the work force and reduce what Republicans have characterized as waste and fraud in government programs. The regulations were introduced  the Trump administration鈥檚 tax cuts.

States must now verify twice a year that many Medicaid recipients remain eligible, a requirement that is expected to result in many people losing coverage periodically, especially if their work hours vary or they move between jobs, or have difficulty navigating the paperwork requirements.

Since 2010, when the Affordable Care Act was passed, the number of uninsured Americans has dropped substantially. In 黑料正能量 State, the share of adults and children without health insurance dropped  . Now, that number is expected to rise again.

The question is by how much.

鈥淭his is truly a seismic shift in Medicaid policy, the largest in the history of the program,鈥� Amir Bassiri, the state Medicaid director, said at a panel discussion hosted last month by the United Hospital Fund, a nonprofit.

Chris Pope, a health care analyst at the Manhattan Institute, a conservative think tank, said that he expected many states 鈥� especially those with Democratic leaders who wanted to expand the social safety net 鈥� to try to blunt the law by searching for exemptions. State officials have a substantial incentive for doing so: The federal government pays 90 percent of the health coverage costs for some Medicaid recipients, with the states paying the remainder.

鈥淢y assessment of the work requirements is there is the greatest possible incentive for states to find every possible loophole,鈥� Mr. Pope said. 鈥淎 blue state like 黑料正能量, I think they鈥檙e going to be looking to implement it in the loosest possible way.鈥�

Dr. Martin said that the effort to keep 黑料正能量ers on Medicaid 鈥� which has not previously been reported 鈥� felt particularly urgent to him, like one of those sci-fi movies in which scientists had to save everyone on Earth from an approaching asteroid.

Still, some health care analysts expressed concern that not enough was being done, given that key provisions of the domestic policy bill were going into effect over the next year.

鈥淚鈥檓 not seeing the kind of public planning process to reassure me they are ready or that they鈥檙e going to be ready,鈥� said Bill Hammond, a health care policy analyst at the Empire Center for Public Policy, a think tank in Albany, N.Y.

The federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services said in a statement that states would be 鈥渞equired to implement these provisions in accordance with the law, and C.M.S. will issue guidance to ensure exemptions are applied appropriately and that eligible beneficiaries are protected.鈥�

To reduce the number of people stymied by paperwork and red tape, 黑料正能量 State has been working to automatically certify residents who are already fulfilling the requirements, by accessing information not only from state databases but from payroll providers.

Elisabeth Benjamin, vice president of health initiatives at the Community Service Society, a nonprofit that supports anti-poverty policies, said that officials were confronting considerable challenges in their effort to prepare for the Medicaid changes.

鈥淭hey鈥檙e doing the best they can to figure out what they can automate, but people are still going to lose coverage 鈥� a lot of people,鈥� Ms. Benjamin said. 鈥淢any of those people are already working, but proving it will be hard.鈥�

She predicted that agricultural laborers upstate and employees in industries with high turnover, intermittent hours or off-the-books payments 鈥� such as kitchen and construction workers 鈥� could be especially prone to losing their health insurance.

The Congressional Budget Office had estimated  because they cannot meet the work requirements, while others will lose their insurance because of administrative hurdles or difficulty .

In 黑料正能量, health officials said that if people lost Medicaid coverage, they would forgo health care, .

 of 黑料正能量ers on Medicaid will probably qualify for exemptions from the new work requirements, which will go into effect next January, according to a presentation that the State Department of Heath shared at the panel discussion.

People with a substance use disorder, for instance, are exempt from the work requirements under the new law. So health officials have been thinking about how to get people鈥檚 addictions properly certified and documented.

It鈥檚 possible that even addictions diagnosed or treated long ago might qualify, even if they 鈥渕ay seem too old,鈥� Mr. Bassiri, the state Medicaid official, said recently. He said that his department was waiting for further guidance from the federal government. 鈥淲e鈥檙e waiting to get a sense of the fine print on the regulations as to how far back things can apply,鈥� he said.

The new federal law also exempts Medicaid recipients who are deemed 鈥渕edically frail鈥� 鈥� a vague description that physicians can interpret widely, said Dr. Martin, the 黑料正能量 City health commissioner.

鈥淭he medical frailty exemption is kind of squishy,鈥� he said, explaining that the city鈥檚 Department of Health and Mental Hygiene was considering how to create a standardized and easy process for physicians to certify patients under this exemption.

鈥淲e鈥檙e looking at what are the tools and levers we can create to make it easy for physicians to really quickly write almost a form letter by clicking a button,鈥� Dr. Martin said.

Dr. Martin鈥檚 r茅sum茅 appears to make him well suited to tackle the problem. An emergency room physician, he once ran voter registration drives for patients while they waited for care. The registration form, once filled out, served as a proof of address, allowing patients to access a range of social services.

Keeping as many 黑料正能量ers insured as possible could prove to be the main challenge of Dr. Martin鈥檚 tenure.

鈥淭his is why I鈥檓 here,鈥� he said in a recent interview, after meeting with colleagues at a city health department clinic in Downtown Brooklyn.

For those who did not otherwise qualify for exemptions from the work requirements, Dr. Martin said he planned to partner with city officials to offer options for community service 鈥� which can satisfy the requirements, even if unpaid.

Dr. Martin has also begun thinking about how to mobilize underemployed 黑料正能量ers to volunteer with the health department or public hospital system, as a way to keep their health insurance.

鈥淲hat if the volunteering that they were doing was helping other 黑料正能量ers stay covered on Medicaid?鈥� he said.

Mr. Pope, the analyst at the Manhattan Institute, said he expected the provision that allowed 鈥渃ommunity service鈥� or a 鈥渨ork program鈥� in place of employment to emerge as 鈥渢he biggest loophole.鈥� He predicted that the federal government would struggle to police that.

The rule requiring 80 hours of work a month might prove flexible. That requirement, according to state health officials, is based on the federal minimum wage of $7.25 an hour, meaning someone would have to earn about $580 a month to qualify.

Health officials said that because the minimum hourly wage in 黑料正能量 State was more than twice that, the requirement could be satisfied with far fewer hours of work a month.

The officials also pointed out that an entire borough might be spared from the work requirement, because the law exempts residents in counties with unemployment rates of 8 percent or above. The unemployment rate in the Bronx was  late last year.

It remains unclear exactly how many 黑料正能量ers will lose federally subsidized health insurance under the new law. Officials have said that the state plans to cover some people who lose federally subsidized insurance. Still, public health experts expect the ranks of the uninsured to rise. 鈥淲e鈥檙e not going to be able to exempt our way out of that,鈥� Dr. Martin said.

The post Executive Seminar Preview: Protecting Medicaid Coverage Amid Federal Changes and What It Means for 黑料正能量ers! appeared first on The Alliance for Rights and Recovery.

At the same time, these findings highlight a broader truth. Hospitals and emergency rooms cannot and should not be the primary entry point for mental health services. This is why it is critical that 黑料正能量 continues to build out a comprehensive crisis service continuum that provides people with the right support, in the right place, at the right time.

That means investing in and expanding:

• Daniel鈥檚 Law first responder teams that provide health-led crisis responses
• Crisis stabilization centers that offer immediate, short-term support
• Peer respites and crisis residences that create safe, community-based alternatives to hospitalization
• Other innovative, community-based crisis services that reduce reliance on ERs

Equally important is ensuring that people have access to effective, ongoing community-based services that can prevent crises before they occur. When individuals are connected to housing, peer support, treatment, and recovery services, we reduce the likelihood of emergency situations and improve long-term outcomes.

For those who do go through hospitalization, we must ensure that discharge planning is not an afterthought. The need for comprehensive discharge plans and direct connections to community-based supports, as required by new regulations, is essential to preventing readmissions and ensuring continuity of services. People should never leave a hospital without a clear pathway to the services and supports they need to recover and thrive.

These issues, and the broader efforts to strengthen 黑料正能量鈥檚 mental health system, will be discussed at tomorrow鈥檚 Executive Seminar, where staff from the 黑料正能量 State Office of Mental Health will present on recent budget investments and this year鈥檚 proposals. They will share how these efforts are working to build a more complete continuum of mental health and substance use services across the state.

We encourage all members and partners to join us for this important conversation. Strengthening accountability is critical, but it must go hand in hand with building the community-based system 黑料正能量ers need and deserve.

Register Today:

黑料正能量-Presbyterian Agrees to Mental Health Overhaul After State Finds Care Failures
By Amanda D鈥橝mbrosio | Crain鈥檚 Healthcare | April 13, 2026

黑料正能量-Presbyterian agreed to overhaul its mental health protocols after an investigation found the hospital system failed to monitor psychiatric patients 鈥� in some cases allowing them to escape from the emergency room 鈥� and neglected to reopen mental health beds shuttered during the pandemic.

State Attorney General Letitia James announced the settlement with 黑料正能量-Presbyterian on Monday following a years-long investigation into its psychiatric treatment programs. The probe highlights the state鈥檚 continued effort to increase psychiatric capacity and improve treatment amid an ongoing mental health crisis.

鈥淭oo many 黑料正能量ers experiencing mental health crises have been met with inadequate care when they need help most,鈥� James said in a statement. She said 黑料正能量-Presbyterian agreed to reforms that will help protect patients, strengthen oversight and ensure individuals in crisis have access to services.

Under the settlement, 黑料正能量-Presbyterian will pay $500,000 to the state for misconduct and implement changes including updating its electronic health records system, improving oversight of psychiatric patients in the emergency room and strengthening discharge planning.

The attorney general鈥檚 office launched an investigation into 黑料正能量-Presbyterian after hearing testimony from patients and providers in 2022 about the lack of access to mental health care. Investigators reviewed medical records and emergency department data of patients with behavioral health conditions from 2018 to 2024 at 黑料正能量-Presbyterian Brooklyn Methodist Hospital.

The investigation found that 黑料正能量-Presbyterian repeatedly failed to keep track of patients experiencing psychiatric emergencies, allowing them to leave the hospital without receiving necessary care. In one instance, a patient with a history of suicide attempts and homocide ideation was referred for inpatient psychiatric care. The patient waited in the emergency room for more than two days until they could be transferred to a bed, and eventually left the hospital without being admitted, the investigation found.

The attorney general鈥檚 office also found that 黑料正能量-Presbyterian failed to reopen inpatient psychiatric beds that closed during the pandemic, despite state policies mandating that hospitals bring such beds back online. 黑料正能量-Presbyterian is licensed for 513 psychiatric beds across its 10 hospital campuses, but more than 100 of those beds remained offline as of May 2023, the investigation found.

Angela Karafazli, a spokeswoman for 黑料正能量-Presbyterian, said in a statement that the health system 鈥渞emains committed to continuous improvement for our patients and the communities we serve.鈥�

鈥淪ince 2022 we have continued to strengthen policies and workflows, expand mental health capacity with inpatient beds and outpatient services, and improve safety,鈥� Karafazli said, adding that the attorney general鈥檚 findings recognize those improvements.

NY AG Reaches Settlement with 黑料正能量-Presbyterian Hospital
By Johan Sheridan | ABC News 10 | April 13, 2026

黑料正能量-Presbyterian Hospital has agreed to overhaul its screening and security protocols and pay $500,000 in fees and costs after state investigators discovered that the hospital system treated psychiatric patients improperly and kept over 100 inpatient psychiatric beds out of service across its system post-COVID. The settlement mandates new observation protocols and monitoring requirements, and NYP administrators have to upgrade their electronic records system so medical providers have up-to-date, accurate information. The state will also impose a $10,000 penalty for any future violations of the terms of the settlement.

ALBANY, N.Y. (NEXSTAR) 鈥� 黑料正能量 Attorney General Letitia James announced a settlement with the 黑料正能量-Presbyterian Hospital system on Monday. The settlement requires the healthcare network to reform its emergency mental health care program.

The legal agreement signed on Friday forces the NYP Hospital system to overhaul its screening and security protocols to prevent patients from wandering out of emergency rooms unsupervised, alongside paying $500,000 for legal fees and court costs. But while they agreed to the settlement, legally, the hospital network neither admitted nor denied the findings from the AG鈥檚 office.

A spokesperson defended their practices in a statement Monday morning: 鈥淧roviding safe, high-quality care for patients with complex behavioral and medical health needs, is a priority,鈥� NYP said. 鈥淪ince 2022 we have continued to strengthen policies and workflows, expand mental health capacity with inpatient beds and outpatient services, and improve safety鈥攊mprovements that the Attorney General鈥檚 findings acknowledge. We are proud to have one of the largest behavioral health footprints of any multi-campus hospital in 黑料正能量 and remain committed to continuous improvement for our patients and the communities we serve.鈥�

But according to James, state investigators discovered that the hospital system treated psychiatric patients improperly, and that they broke the law to keep available mental health beds closed post-COVID.

鈥淭oo many 黑料正能量ers experiencing mental health crises have been met with inadequate care when they need help most,鈥� the attorney general said in a statement announcing the settlement. 鈥淢ental health care is necessary medical care, and hospitals have a legal and moral obligation to treat these crises with urgency and compassion.鈥�

Investigators at the AG鈥檚 office reported that care in ERs repeatedly broke down at NYP, including consistent failures to properly screen or stabilize patients with behavioral health issues. They said they found that hospital staff didn鈥檛 properly supervise patients or review any external records from emergency medical workers when determining care.

According to the AG鈥檚 office, in one case, a suicidal teenager left the hospital within minutes of his evaluation because staff didn鈥檛 follow safety precautions. Another patient ran from the emergency department after attacking a bystander, but hospital staff waited until the next day to notify police. Another patient鈥攁 schizophrenic septuagenarian鈥攍eft without supervision, sleeping in the lobbies of area buildings during a rainstorm.

The investigation also apparently revealed that NYP failed to bring its licensed inpatient psychiatric beds back online after the pandemic. As of May 2023, they were keeping over 100 beds out of service across its system. Investigators said that contributed to a shortage of inpatient care as emergency rooms overflowed with patients experiencing a mental health crisis.

But ultimately, NYP did submit a state-approved plan in late 2023 to restore offline units, expand outpatient programs, and bring its enterprise-wide psychiatric bed capacity to 499.

In the interest of safety, the settlement mandates new observation protocols and monitoring requirements. NYP administrators also have to upgrade their electronic records system so medical providers have up-to-date, accurate information.

The state will also impose a $10,000 penalty for any future violations of the terms of the settlement.

Take a look at the terms of the settlement here:

The post Executive Seminar Preview: Strengthening Accountability and Expanding NY鈥檚 Crisis Continuum! appeared first on The Alliance for Rights and Recovery.

OMH is partnering with the directors of Community Services in the Hudson River region to host in-person Community Engagement Sessions on April 21 and 22, 2026. The intent is to continue the conversation started in 2023, when OMH conducted Community Engagement Sessions throughout the state. We鈥檙e returning to share what we did with your feedback and hear more about your needs and your ideas.

The next sessions are scheduled for Tuesday, April 21, from 6 to 8 p.m., and Wednesday, April 22, from 10 a.m. to noon:

• Lansingburgh Boys and Girls Club, 501 4^th Avenue in Troy.
• Yonkers Public Library 鈥� Grinton I. Will Branch, 1500 Central Park Avenue in Yonkers.

Sessions are open to all community members. Children, youth, adults, older adults, and families are welcome. There will be breakout groups specifically for young people.

We especially want to hear from people who receive or have received mental health services, and people who have wanted to get services but haven鈥檛. We are asking for help from peer workers and other mental health providers, advocates, and anyone who works with people participating in mental health programs. Please share this information with the people you work with so all voices can be heard.

Please register in advance using the link or QR code below. The registration form has space to describe any accessibility needs you have. If you need ASL or other language interpretation, please reach out to feedbackoapss@omh.ny.gov as soon as possible.

Register Here!

The post NEXT WEEK! Hudson River Region Community Engagement Sessions, April 21 and 22 鈥� OMH Wants to Hear From You! appeared first on The Alliance for Rights and Recovery.

Recent reporting on the push to overhaul Tier 6 pensions highlights the immense influence of public sector unions and the willingness of state leaders to consider costly proposals, with estimates reaching $1.5 billion annually. While we respect the role of unions and the importance of fair compensation, it is deeply frustrating to see such significant increases gain traction while the nonprofit mental health and substance use sector, long referred to as the state鈥檚 鈥渋ndirect workforce,鈥漜ontinues to be underfunded and overlooked.

Our sector carries an enormous share of responsibility. Nonprofit providers serve far greater numbers of individuals, often with more complex needs, and require sustained, long-term engagement to support recovery and stability. Unlike state-operated systems, which primarily serve individuals once they are already hospitalized, community-based providers must find, engage, and support people where they are, often before crises escalate. This work is essential to reducing hospitalizations, strengthening communities, and improving outcomes.

And yet, despite this critical role, our workforce continues to lag behind. At a time when other sectors are advancing major funding increases, we are still fighting for a modest but necessary 4% targeted inflationary increase to stabilize services, retain staff, and meet growing demand.

If 黑料正能量 is serious about affordability, equity, and system transformation, it must invest in the very workforce that makes community-based support possible.

These issues will be front and center at our upcoming Executive Seminar, where representatives from the 黑料正能量 State Office of Mental Health will discuss how current budget proposals, along with prior state investments, are intended to strengthen the continuum of mental health and substance use services. This will be a critical opportunity to better understand what鈥檚 at stake and how we can collectively advocate for a system that prioritizes community services, workforce sustainability, and long-term recovery.

The time to act is now. We must ensure that this year鈥檚 final budget reflects the true needs of 黑料正能量ers and the providers who serve them every day.

Register Today:

Opposing Tier 6 Changes is a Lonely Stance in Albany
By Nick Reisman | Politico | April 13, 2026

The labor-led drive to overhaul the Tier 6 pension category is steamrolling through the state Capitol 鈥� with few officials disagreeing with powerful unions seeking to lower the retirement age and reduce employee contributions.

It鈥檚 a disheartening development for Republican Assemblymember Michael Fitzpatrick, a Long Island lawmaker who is perhaps the most vocal and rare opponent to changing the pension.

A former financial services worker, Fitzpatrick knows firsthand how pension costs can become unwieldy. But his legislative colleagues have become, in effect, captured by higher pay and strict limits on how much money they can earn in the private sector, Fitzpatrick believes. Opposing politically active unions can be a career killer for state lawmakers in both parties.

鈥淵ou now, in a sense, have a professional Legislature,鈥� Fitzpatrick said in an interview. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 right where the unions want us. You鈥檙e asking the legislators to vote against their own financial best interest. So who is going to say no to the alphabet soup of unions when, if I lose, I鈥檓 out of the pension system.鈥�

The Tier 6 fight is testing the clout of the state鈥檚 influential public employee unions 鈥� including groups that represent teachers, state workers and municipal employees. The unions are communicating directly with their members, urging them to lobby lawmakers for the changes. The aggressive push, though, is meeting little bipartisan resistance. Legislators and Gov. Kathy Hochul attended an Albany rally staged by unions last month in support of overhauling Tier 6.

Public-sector labor leaders want to lower the retirement age to 55 after 30 years of service and reduce how much workers pay into the system depending on their income. As it now stands, contribution rates into the pension fund top out at 6 percent of a worker鈥檚 take-home pay; a union-backed proposal would lower contributions to as low as 3 percent for employees earning less than $75,000.

Union officials have also made clear they intend to weigh Tier 6 support heavily when considering endorsements this election year. United Federation of Teachers President Michael Mulgrew  that the pension push will 鈥渁bsolutely鈥� be part of the group鈥檚 endorsement consideration.

All told, the changes are expected  for school districts, local governments and the state government.

Those costs will, in turn, be shouldered in many cases by property taxpayers just as Hochul and the Democratic-controlled Legislature press for affordability measures in state budget talks.

鈥淚 know how the system works,鈥� Fitzpatrick said. 鈥淲e are creating a math problem. We cannot in my opinion vote for this and claim affordability.鈥�

But Fitzpatrick鈥檚 opposition to Tier 6 is largely an outlier among the 213 members of the Legislature. Few Republicans have been vocal about their concerns with changing the pension tier and the potential impact on one of the highest taxed states in the country.

鈥淩aising the legislature鈥檚 salary to $142,000 has changed the calculation around what should be public service,鈥� said Ken Girardin, a senior fellow at the Manhattan Institute, a fiscally conservative think tank. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 increased the electoral anxiety level for lawmakers and that鈥檚 created an opening for the unions to demand crazier stuff.鈥�

Tier 6 was created in 2012 at the behest of then-Gov. Andrew Cuomo with the long-term goal of easing pension costs 鈥� especially for local governments and school districts producing budgets that limited how much they could raise from property taxes. Unions blasted the pension change and over the years have fought to chip away at the intended savings.

Fiscal hawks warn that the depth of the changes being sought by labor this time will further drive up costs.

鈥淣o one can credibly say they鈥檙e advancing affordability in 黑料正能量 when they鈥檙e also sweetening public pensions and driving up property taxes,鈥� Girardin said.

The post Executive Seminar Preview: Budget Delays and the Fight to Invest in 黑料正能量鈥檚 Mental Health Workforce! appeared first on The Alliance for Rights and Recovery.

It is critical to remember: this is the President鈥檚 proposed budget, not the final federal budget. While it signals the Administration鈥檚 priorities and vision, Congress ultimately holds the power of the purse. As we saw with the federal spending package passed earlier this year, lawmakers can and do push back, crafting and passing budgets that differ significantly from initial proposals.

The proposed elimination of SAMHSA as a standalone agency and consolidation of key funding streams threatens to erode decades of progress in building a comprehensive, community-based behavioral health system. Dedicated funding for prevention, recovery, workforce development, and equity-focused programs is essential to ensuring that people receive timely, appropriate support. Without these investments, and without a dedicated federal agency focused specifically on mental health and substance use, we risk increased disparities, weakened infrastructure, and poorer outcomes nationwide.

The Alliance for Rights and Recovery will be actively advocating with Congress throughout the coming months to ensure that this proposal does not become the final federal budget. We will push for a federal spending plan that protects and strengthens mental health and substance use services, preserves critical programs, and maintains a strong, visible federal commitment to behavioral health.

We encourage our members and partners to stay engaged. This issue will be a key focus of our upcoming Executive Seminar, where we will provide an overview of recent federal budget developments, what these proposed changes could mean for 黑料正能量ers, and, most importantly, what actions we can take together to influence the outcome.

Register Today:

Now is the time to raise our voices. The future of our behavioral health system depends on it.

The 2027 SAMHSA Budget Proposal: Substantial System Shock
By Ron Manderscheid

The proposed 2027 Administration budget for the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) is not a routine fiscal adjustment. It is a structural overhaul鈥攐ne that effectively dismantles the agency as we know it while reducing total federal investment in behavioral health at a time of sustained and growing need. Framed as consolidation and innovation, the proposal raises foundational questions about federal priorities, system capacity, and the future of community-based behavioral health in the United States.

A Disappearing Agency
At the center of the proposal is the elimination of SAMHSA as a distinct entity through its consolidation into the newly proposed Administration for a Healthy America (AHA). This restructuring is accompanied by a proposed reduction in the SAMHSA-related mental and behavioral health portfolio from approximately $7.346 billion in FY 2026 to $6.769 billion in FY 2027, a cut of roughly $576 million.

While core functions may be redistributed across federal structures, the symbolic and operational loss is potentially far-reaching. For more than three decades, SAMHSA has served as the federal government鈥檚 primary steward of community mental health and substance use services. Its disappearance signals a shift away from a dedicated, specialized focus toward a more diffuse鈥攁nd potentially less accountable鈥攁pproach. Behavioral health risks becoming subsumed within broader health bureaucracies, where it has historically struggled to maintain visibility, priority, and resources.

Block Grants Consolidated
The proposal eliminates three cornerstone funding streams:

• Community Mental Health Services Block Grant
• Substance Use Prevention, Treatment, and Recovery Services Block Grant
• State Opioid Response Grants

In their place, the Administration proposes a single Behavioral Health Innovation Block Grant, totaling approximately $4.6 billion.

On paper, consolidation offers flexibility. States could align funding more efficiently across mental health and substance use systems. But in practice, this move removes dedicated funding silos that ensured minimum investment levels in critical areas. Without these guardrails, states facing fiscal pressures may redirect funds away from prevention, recovery supports, or underserved populations.

The timing is particularly consequential. The opioid crisis remains volatile, stimulant use is rising, and mental health needs鈥攅specially among youth鈥攃ontinue to escalate. Folding targeted responses into a generalized funding pool risks diluting focus precisely when specificity is most needed.

The Quiet Elimination of Infrastructure
Perhaps the most consequential aspect of the proposal is the elimination of approximately 30 grant programs, many of which form the backbone of community-based behavioral health infrastructure. These include:

• Minority Fellowship Programs (~$20M)
• Primary and Behavioral Health Care Integration (~$60M)
• Strategic Prevention Framework (~$137M)
• Tribal Behavioral Health Grants (~$52M)
• Minority AIDS Initiative (~$119M)
• Mental Health Awareness and Training (~$28M)
• Homelessness Prevention Programs (~$28M)
• Mental Health Crisis Response Partnership Pilot (~$20M)

These are not marginal programs. They represent decades of federal investment in workforce development, prevention science, integrated care, and health equity.

Their elimination would have cascading effects:

Workforce Pipeline Disruption. Programs such as the Minority Fellowship Programs have been central to diversifying the behavioral health workforce. Their removal would slow progress toward culturally competent care at a time when disparities remain stark.

Setbacks in Integration. The loss of Primary and Behavioral Health Care Integration funding would undermine one of the most promising strategies for improving outcomes and reducing costs. Integration remains uneven nationally and requires sustained investment鈥攏ot withdrawal.

Prevention Erosion. The Strategic Prevention Framework has been a cornerstone of evidence-based prevention. Eliminating it would risk shifting the system further toward crisis response rather than upstream intervention.

Tribal and Equity Impacts. Cuts to Tribal Behavioral Health and Minority AIDS programs would disproportionately affect populations already facing systemic barriers. These are not easily replaced at the state or local level.

PAIMI: Loss of Human Rights Protections. The proposed two-thirds reduction in the Protection and Advocacy for Individuals with Mental Illness (PAIMI) program鈥攆rom $40 million to $14.146 million鈥攊s particularly concerning.

PAIMI serves as a critical safeguard for the rights of individuals with serious mental illness, especially those in institutional or custodial settings. A reduction of this magnitude would significantly weaken oversight capacity, increasing the risk of abuse, neglect, and civil rights violations.

In an era of expanding involuntary treatment debates and growing pressures on crisis systems, weakening advocacy infrastructure sends a deeply troubling signal.

What Would Survive
Not all programs are eliminated. The budget preserves a subset of services and functions, including elements of:

• Recovery support and community-based services
• Consumer and technical assistance centers
• Selected treatment and service delivery programs

These surviving elements suggest continued recognition of recovery and community-based care as essential components of the behavioral health system.

However, preservation alone is not sufficient. Without the broader ecosystem of prevention, workforce development, and integrated care, these programs risk operating in isolation鈥攁ddressing downstream consequences without the upstream supports needed to reduce demand.

Major System-Level Implications
Taken together, the proposal represents a shift from a comprehensive public health model to a more state-driven framework with fewer federal mandates and less categorical funding.

This shift carries several major risks:

Increased State Variability. States would have greater discretion鈥攂ut also greater responsibility. Wealthier or more policy-committed states may sustain robust systems, while others may scale back, leading to widening geographic disparities.

Erosion of National Strategy. SAMHSA has historically provided a unifying national vision for behavioral health. Its elimination would risk fragmenting efforts across states and federal agencies, reducing coherence, coordination, and shared learning.

Long-Term Costs. Cuts to prevention, integration, and workforce development may yield short-term federal savings but are likely to increase downstream costs in emergency care, incarceration, and lost productivity.

Strain on Local Systems. Counties and community providers鈥攁lready operating under tight margins鈥攚ould bear the brunt of these changes. Many rely on SAMHSA funding not only for services, but also for technical assistance, data infrastructure, and innovation support.

The Bottom Line
The 2027 SAMHSA budget proposal is not simply a reduction鈥攊t also is a proposed redefinition of the federal role in behavioral health. It prioritizes consolidation and flexibility over specialization and targeted investment.

Behavioral health systems are not static. They are built鈥攐r dismantled鈥攖hrough sustained policy choices. This proposal marks a pivotal moment. The question is not just what will be cut, but what will be lost鈥攁nd how long it will take to rebuild. Urgent advocacy with the Congress will be necessary to prevent these losses.

The post Executive Seminar: Federal Budget Proposal Threatens Behavioral Health, What鈥檚 at Stake and How to Act! appeared first on The Alliance for Rights and Recovery.

Please broadly circulate this survey from OMH’s Office of Advocacy and Peer Support Services to help guide us all in how effective our service delivery and advocacy has been in helping people to improve their lives. 

Greetings! 

The Office of Mental Health (OMH) is continuing to work hard to reach our goal of a more person-centered mental health system. Part of that work involves including the voices of people who currently receive or have received services in the past in how we measure the quality of mental health programs and services. As we continue to do this inside OMH, we are also asking for help from 黑料正能量ers. We are sending out a survey to hear from youth, young adults, adults, older adults, and families about what you think is most important to measure when deciding if a service 鈥渨orked鈥� or not.

The survey should take no more than 10 minutes, and your responses will help inform how OMH measure quality of care and whether/how that care helped an individual.

Survey link:

The survey will close on Monday, 4/27.

Thank you!

The post Survey Opportunity – Please Provide Your Feedback on Measuring Quality of Care! appeared first on The Alliance for Rights and Recovery.

CALL FOR PROPOSALS: Alliance Annual Conference

Our Alliance for Rights and Recovery is extremely pleased to invite proposals for our 44th Annual Conference, 鈥淥ur Movement, Our Moment鈥�, to be held September 23-25 at our new location at the Albany Marriot. We鈥檝e created a newer, more accessible and modern environment because our movement is evolving鈥攁nd the spaces where we gather must evolve with it.

At the same time, we will bring the same unmatched sense of power, purpose, discovery, healing, spirit, solidarity, and celebration that has made our widely acclaimed conference a beloved annual tradition across our state and nation for more than four decades.

Your presentation will uplift and inform recovery and rights proponents, community providers, peer supporters, policymakers and pioneers to resolutely promote personal rights and recovery and foster the highest quality community services and supports!

Topic Categories:

• Foundations of Peer Support
• Mental Health, Substance Use & Whole Health
• Systems Navigation & Integration
• Equity, Inclusion & Cultural Responsiveness
• Person-Centered Services and Supports
• Workforce Development & Leadership
• Advocacy, Policy & Systems Change
• Innovation & Emerging Practices
• Sustainability & Organizational Health
• Personal Growth, Recovery & Lived Experience
• Practice-Based Skill Building

Submit Proposals Using this Link:

The post Submit Proposals for the Alliance鈥檚 44th Annual Conference, Sept 23-25! appeared first on The Alliance for Rights and Recovery.

Alliance for Rights and Recovery’s Cultural Competence Committee

As we recognize Black Maternal Health Week, the Alliance鈥檚 Cultural Competence Committee stands in solidarity with the 黑料正能量 State Office of Mental Health and partners across the state in acknowledging the deep and persistent inequities that impact Black birthing individuals and families. This week is both a moment of recognition and a call to action.

We know that disparities in maternal and mental health outcomes are not accidental, they are the result of longstanding systemic inequities that continue to shape access to support, quality of services, and overall health outcomes. Black women are disproportionately impacted by gaps in perinatal and behavioral health services, and far too often encounter systems that fail to provide culturally responsive, trauma-informed, and respectful services.

The Alliance鈥檚 Cultural Competence Committee remains committed to advancing policies and investments that ensure Black women and birthing people receive equitable, high-quality mental health services before, during, and after pregnancy. This includes expanding access to community-based, peer-led, and culturally grounded supports; strengthening the perinatal workforce; and ensuring that Medicaid and other public systems adequately fund and sustain these services.

We applaud efforts highlighted in this announcement, including the expansion of perinatal mental health resources and trainings, and emphasize the importance of continued collaboration with communities most impacted. Equity must be embedded at every level of the system, from policy design to service delivery. Black Maternal Health Week reminds us that achieving equity requires sustained commitment. The Alliance will continue to advocate for a system where every parent is treated with dignity, every voice is heard, and every family has the support they need to thrive.

The 黑料正能量 State Office of Mental Health recognizes Black Maternal Health Week and the urgent need to address disparities impacting Black birthing individuals and families. We acknowledge the role of systemic inequities in shaping parental and mental health outcomes and reaffirm our commitment to advancing equitable, culturally responsive care across 黑料正能量 State.

OMH is proud to support initiatives that strengthen perinatal mental health services, including 黑料正能量 State鈥檚 , which provides a roadmap to address challenges affecting a significant portion of expecting and postpartum individuals. We continue to promote access to training and resources such as and its upcoming being held on May 8^th, 2026, from 9 a.m 鈥� 4 p.m. This offering is available at no cost to professionals who support pregnant and postpartum individuals in 黑料正能量 State.

Resources

We also recognize the importance of expanding access to community-based support and strengthening systems that center dignity, trust, and whole person care. OMH remains committed to providing Black expecting parents and their families with the mental health resources and support they need.

As we uplift Black Maternal Health Week, we encourage providers, partners, and community members to engage with the following available resources:

• : 黑料正能量 State has family support programs for pregnant and parenting families, provided at no cost to the family.
• : Offering home-based services to support expectant families and new parents with the changes and needs that often come with the birth of a child.
• : 黑料正能量 State Medicaid (FFS) covers doula services for pregnant and postpartum members, providing up to 8 prenatal/postpartum visits and continuous labor support.
• Recognizing and Renaming in Obstetrics: How Do We Take Better Care with Language?:聽This editorial offers a way forward for the use of language that is inclusive of women, transgender (trans) and other gender minority people in reproductive health.

Join our Perinatal Mental Health listserv (PerinatalMentalHealth@omh.ny.gov) to stay informed, connected, and engaged in advancing maternal mental health across 黑料正能量 State.

How to Subscribe:

• Use this 聽to let us know you’re interested.

Why Sign Up?

• Stay informed:聽Get all聽New聽York State perinatal mental health updates from聽OMH.
• Easy聽Communication:聽Send messages to聽OMH聽regarding perinatal mental health.

Who Should Sign Up?

• ALL stakeholders – pregnant or postpartum individuals, family members, clinical and non-clinical providers, researchers, health systems/institutions, policymakers, payers/insurers, advocacy groups, community organizations, etc. – are encouraged to subscribe.

Office of Diversity and Inclusion
44 Holland Avenue, Albany NY 12229 –
518-473-4548 – OfficeDiversityInclusion@omh.ny.gov

The post Honoring Black Maternal Health Week (4/11-4/17): Advancing Equity, Dignity, and Culturally Responsive Services for Black Families! appeared first on The Alliance for Rights and Recovery.