Lander, Levine, Hudson to Announce Fair Pay for Home Care Resolution
City Comptroller Brad Lander, Manhattan Borough President Mark Levine and City Councilmember and Committee on Aging Chair Crystal Hudson (D-Brooklyn) today announce the introduction of the Fair Pay for Home Care Resolution in the New York City Council.
The resolution calls upon the Governor and the State Legislature to pass the Fair Pay for Home Care Act to end the home care shortage. According to a recent Mercer labor analysis, New York State faces the worst home care shortage in the natio and low wages are the single largest driving factor.
Fair Pay for Home Care was recently included in the Senate and Assembly’s one-house budget resolutions. Fair Pay for Home Care is supported by 1199, AARP, NAACP, Democratic majorities in the Senate and Assembly, and the NY Black, Puerto Rican, Hispanic, & Asian Legislative Caucus, and has bi-partisan support in both houses.
The announcement is slated for 1:30 p.m., today, March 14 at City Hall Park on Broadway in Lower Manhattan.
Malliotakis, Tannousis Lead Rally Decrying Biden Proposal to Close Brooklyn VA Clinic
U.S. Rep. Nicole Malliotakis (D-Staten Island, Brooklyn) yesterday joined Staten Island Borough President Vito Fossella, Assemblymember Michael Tannousis (D-Staten Island, Brooklyn) and local veterans groups at two events to speak out against the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs’ (VA) proposal to close and consolidate VA Medical Centers in New York City.
Under the VA’s proposal, the Manhattan and Brooklyn VA Medical Centers would close entirely, contracting out inpatient and outpatient services to private medical providers as part of a new “strategic collaboration.”
While veteran mental-health services would be expanded on Staten Island, the clinic would merge with a VA medical campus in New Jersey. This means veterans who are patients at the Staten Island clinic would be forced to travel upwards of two hours round trip and face a burdensome $16 toll to receive specialized treatment.
As of 2019, there were 138,000 veterans living in the New York City metropolitan area according to the U.S. Census Bureau, with 75 percent being senior citizens. The Brooklyn VA Medical Center and Manhattan VA Medical Center service roughly 1,000 veterans every day (M-F) for outpatient appointments.
“Under no circumstance will we allow the Biden Administration to close our VA hospitals,” said Malliotakis. “Our VA Medical Centers provide specialized treatments and services that our veterans rely on, need, and quite frankly, deserve. I hope my colleagues on the other side of the aisle will be steadfast and strong against this proposal. If President Biden is serious about expanding health care access to our nation’s veterans, I fully expect this proposal to be dead on arrival if it gets to his desk.”
“The potential closure of the Brooklyn VA Medical Center is unacceptable,” Tannousis said at the Brooklyn Rally. “Our veterans have not been receiving the proper support that they deserve to begin with. The potential closure of this medical center is a slap in the face to the people that put their lives in harm’s way to protect us.”
Brewer at National League of Cities Conference
City Council Member Gale Brewer (D-Manhattan) yesterday and today is in Washington D.C. for the National League of Cities 2022 Congressional City Conference as a member of the National League of Cities Human Development Committee.
Brewer yesterday met with the U.S. Department of Labor about American Rescue Plan Act priorities, forthcoming competitive grant opportunities, and the Administration’s workforce priorities.
She also received a briefing from the Department of Homeland Security regarding Operation Allies Welcome and an update regarding the Russia/Ukraine situation.
She has been discussing workforce readiness research, using ARPA funds to support early learning, and how we can improve outcomes for youth and young people who face structural barriers to accessing equitable career pathways and quality jobs.
Brewer will be moderating a panel today titled: “Building a Healthy, Supported and Trained Workforce: How ARPA Can Help Your Community Invest in Worker Education and Training”
The panel is slated to meet from 10:15 a.m. – 11:30 p.m., today, March 14 at the Marriott Marquis Hotel, Washington, DC. More information about the conference is available at: https://www.nlc.org/conferences-meetings/.
Suozzi to Announce $2 Million in Federal Funding for “Geriatric Center of Excellence”
U.S. Rep. Tom Suozzi (D – Long Island, Queens) will announce today that he has secured $2 million in federal funding to support the Geriatric Center of Excellence at Glen Cove Hospital.
The funding for this project, along with another seven community initiatives spearheaded by Suozzi, comes as both the House of Representatives and the Senate have passed a federal budget.
The Geriatric Center of Excellence at Glen Cove Community Hospital will work with the local community, assisted living facilities, nursing homes, and the Glen Cove Senior Center to serve as model for geriatric care for the region and the nation. The Center provides some of the best care for seniors in the region and has helped revitalize the hospital. Supporting the hospital has always been a goal of Suozzi’s since he served as Mayor in 1994.
The announcement is slated for 11:30 a.m., today, March 14 at the Glen Cove Hospital, 101 St Andrews Ln in Glen Cove.
