Bill Text: NY A01577 | 2023-2024 | General Assembly | Amended

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Bill Title: Directs the independent developmental disability ombudsman program to establish a service delivery structure based in New York state that includes a toll-free telephone hotline, an interactive website, and availability of in-person, telephone and email access to ombudsman program staff or volunteers; to provide assistance for navigating and completing processes; to assist individuals in filing and preparing appeals; to assist individuals with any problems encountered; and to educate individuals on their rights and responsibilities with respect to access to services provided by the office for people with developmental disabilities and care coordination provided by health homes serving individuals with developmental disabilities or services provided by other providers.

Spectrum: Strong Partisan Bill (Democrat 11-1)

Status: (Introduced) 2024-05-20 - substituted by s3108a [A01577 Detail]

Download: New_York-2023-A01577-Amended.html

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                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________

                                         1577--A

                               2023-2024 Regular Sessions

                   IN ASSEMBLY

                                    January 17, 2023
                                       ___________

        Introduced  by M. of A. BUTTENSCHON, DARLING, EPSTEIN, CUNNINGHAM, McDO-
          NALD, STERN, GUNTHER, DeSTEFANO, GONZALEZ-ROJAS, SILLITTI -- read once
          and referred to the Committee on People with Disabilities -- recommit-
          ted to the Committee on People with Disabilities  in  accordance  with
          Assembly Rule 3, sec. 2 -- committee discharged, bill amended, ordered
          reprinted as amended and recommitted to said committee

        AN ACT to amend the mental hygiene law, in relation to the duties of the
          independent developmental disability ombudsman program

          The  People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:

     1    Section 1. Section 33.28 of  the  mental  hygiene  law,  as  added  by
     2  section  1  of  part KK of chapter 57 of the laws of 2023, is amended to
     3  read as follows:
     4  § 33.28 Independent developmental disability ombudsman program.
     5    (a) There is hereby established by the office for people with develop-
     6  mental disabilities the independent developmental  disability  ombudsman
     7  program  for  the  purpose  of  assisting individuals with developmental
     8  disabilities to ensure access by such individuals  to  services  and  to
     9  preserve their rights.
    10    (b) Such ombudsman program shall have the following duties, including,
    11  but not limited to:
    12    1.  establishing  a service delivery structure based in New York state
    13  that includes a toll-free telephone hotline, an interactive website, and
    14  availability of in-person,  telephone  and  email  access  to  ombudsman
    15  program staff or volunteers;
    16    2. identifying, investigating, referring and resolving complaints that
    17  are  made by, or on behalf of individuals relative to access to services
    18  provided by the office for people  with  developmental  disabilities  or
    19  care  coordination or other providers certified and/or authorized by the
    20  office to provide services to people with  developmental  disabilities[,
    21  and  access  to  initial  and  continuing intellectual and developmental
    22  disability services and supports];
    23    3. providing assistance for navigating and completing processes,  such
    24  as  paperwork  and  documentation,  to  access  services provided by the

         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD05102-03-3
        A. 1577--A                          2

     1  office for people with developmental disabilities or  the  care  coordi-
     2  nation  provided  by health homes serving individuals with developmental
     3  disabilities to individuals or services   provided by  other  providers,
     4  and/or anyone seeking assistance on their behalf;
     5    4.  assisting individuals in filing and preparing appeals, and repres-
     6  enting individuals in appeals and hearings  concerning  adverse  benefit
     7  determinations regarding services provided by the office for people with
     8  developmental  disabilities  or  health  homes  serving individuals with
     9  developmental disabilities to individuals or services provided by  other
    10  providers;
    11    5.  collecting,  tracking,  and  quantifying  problems  and  inquiries
    12  encountered by individuals; and
    13    6. educating individuals on their  rights  and  responsibilities  with
    14  respect  to  access  to  services provided by the office for people with
    15  developmental disabilities and  care  coordination  provided  by  health
    16  homes  serving  individuals  with developmental disabilities or services
    17  provided by other providers.
    18    (c) Notices and materials provided to individuals by  the  office  for
    19  people  with  developmental disabilities, providers of services, and the
    20  health homes serving individuals with developmental  disabilities  shall
    21  include  the  name,  phone number and website address of the independent
    22  developmental disability ombudsman program established by the office for
    23  people with developmental disabilities pursuant to this section.    [The
    24  phone number shall be available for forty hours every week.]
    25    (d)  Funds  available for expenditure pursuant to this section for the
    26  establishment  of  an  independent  developmental  disability  ombudsman
    27  program  may  be  allocated  and  distributed by the commissioner of the
    28  office for  people  with  developmental  disabilities,  subject  to  the
    29  approval  of the director of the budget, but only after the commissioner
    30  of the office for people with developmental disabilities holds a request
    31  for proposal process for the establishment of  an  independent  develop-
    32  mental disability ombudsman program. Only domestic not-for-profit corpo-
    33  rations shall be eligible to submit proposals for such program. Entities
    34  that  currently receive funding from the office for people with develop-
    35  mental disabilities to provide services  to  people  with  developmental
    36  disabilities,  or  to  operate  care coordination organizations, or that
    37  bill the Medicaid program for medical or health care services, shall  be
    38  excluded  from  consideration. The commissioner of the office for people
    39  with developmental disabilities shall consider all competitive proposals
    40  submitted through such request for proposal process and shall  determine
    41  which  proposal  submitted  is  appropriate  for the establishment of an
    42  independent developmental disability ombudsman program. In  making  such
    43  determination,  applicants who demonstrate experience providing advocacy
    44  or assistance to  people  with  developmental  disabilities,  experience
    45  operating  a  call  center, or experience tracking and reporting on case
    46  activities while protecting  individual  confidentiality  shall  receive
    47  deference for the award.
    48    § 2. This act shall take effect on the one hundred eightieth day after
    49  it shall have become a law and shall apply to all policies and contracts
    50  issued,  renewed,  modified,  altered or amended on and after such date;
    51  provided, however, that if section 1 of part KK of  chapter  57  of  the
    52  laws  of  2023  shall  not have taken effect on or before such date then
    53  this act shall take effect on the same date and in the  same  manner  as
    54  such  section  of  such  part of such chapter of the laws of 2023, takes
    55  effect.