News and EventsFor upcoming NYSABA events, please see our calendar: HERE
ABA Medicaid UpdateFebruary 12, 2025
Dear NYSABA Members, First, thank you all for taking time to reach out to your legislators about the Governor’s budget cut to Medicaid ABA Services. The Legislature’s review of the Governor’s budget is well underway, and we will need your help several more times over the next month to convince legislators to reject the proposed cut to Medicaid ABA Services by $9.6 million. Yesterday, the Commissioner of Health, James McDonald, testified at the Joint Legislative Health Budget Hearing. When questioned about the cut by Assembly Member Andrew Hevesi (D-Forest Hills, Queens), the Commissioner explained that the Medicaid cut will be achieved by reducing the unlicensed personnel rate to $38.50, resulting in the lowest ABA rate nationwide. Much later in the day, Maureen O’Grady testified on behalf of NYSABA at the same hearing. It enabled her to provide a rebuttal to the Commissioner’s comments earlier in the day. Maureen testified that reducing the rate paid to unlicensed personnel (i.e. behavior technicians) will create an unsustainable situation. She explained to committee members that New York has been utilizing a blended rate for all ABA codes, which helps compensate for the cost of the Licensed Behavior Analyst. The rates will no longer be sustainable if they are uncoupled. Reducing the unlicensed personnel rate to the extent it is the lowest in the country, while simultaneously not increasing the LBA rate, will set up Medicaid ABA programs in New York to fail. Today, we are circulating her oral remarks as well as the full NYSABA testimony to members of the health committee. As all of you know full well, New York was the 49th state to cover ABA under its Medicaid program. We advocated for years to secure Medicaid support for ABA services so that providers would be encouraged to enroll in the New York Medicaid program. Legislators must understand that a cut to the Medicaid program so soon would be a devastating step in the wrong direction.
Friday is the first deadline for legislators to register their budget priorities and concerns with the Senate Majority Leader and Assembly Speaker. After this week, NYSABA will send out additional guidance and advocacy instructions for the upcoming weeks. Also we would encourage everyone to join us in Albany on March 3 and 4. NYSABA will be organizing legislative meetings on March 3 and 4 and conducting a member briefing on Tuesday morning.
Thank you again for your support and efforts to date to defeat this immensely deleterious Medicaid budget cut. Please direct any questions to: [email protected] . Further instructions will be provided in the coming days. We appreciate your partnership on this important issue.
Sincerely, Maureen O’Grady, BCBA, LBA and Deborah Napolitano, PhD, BCBA-D, LBA Public Policy Committee
Links:
NYS CALL TO ACTION!The Governor’s budget reduces Medicaid spending for Applied Behavior Analysis services by $9.6 million. This cut will lead to a direct reduction in life-changing services that support children and adults with autism and other intellectual and developmental disabilities. We need to act quickly to inform the legislature that we reject these cuts! If possible, please send the general letter AND either the provider or parent/caregiver letter. Actionnetwork - Can send a letter through Actionnetwork https://actionnetwork.org/letters/reject-governor-hochuls-proposed-cuts-to-medicaid-aba General Letter for All: Parents and Caregivers: ABA Provider Letter: https://actionnetwork.org/letters/e14acd5580a98adf04d9fb9ed0b6e5c5e862f7d3?source=direct_link& NYSABA 2024 CONFERENCE: CALL FOR PAPERSPlease check out our conference page for more information about our call for papers! Announcement! All recently graduated behavior analysis students working in New York:Graduates from New York State registered programs can apply for a 3-year “graduate permit.” This permit gives you permission to practice behavior analysis so that you can continue to accrue experience hours after you are enrolled in a registered program but have not yet received your professional license. This application is now on the Office of the Professions website. This replaces the 1-year limited permit.
Announcement! All practicing and aspiring Licensed Behavior Analysts in New York:Posted 5/27/24 The New York State Education Department (NYSED) updated its Mandated Reporter Training Requirements, requiring a new version of the Child Abuse Identification training taking effect in April 2025. The training is currently being offered for free. Please see the Office of Children and Family Services website for details.
NYS Annual Prescriber FormPosted 4/7/24 Chapter 818 of the Laws of 2021 (818) became effective June 30, 2023 and allows Licensed Behavior Analysts to provide ABA services to any person with a diagnosis in the DSM-V, not just autism spectrum disorder. As per this law, the licensed behavior analyst is required to report to the prescribing licensed professional on an annual basis. Failure to report to the prescriber on an annual basis is considered professional misconduct. NYSABA has developed a form that can be used to submit this report to the provider. This one page form has been developed in collaboration with Dr. Dennis Kuo, a developmental pediatrician, and feedback was obtained from other prescribers. The requirement to report to the prescriber is a great opportunity for LBAs to disseminate information regarding the efficacy of ABA services. The form is attached below.
Important Legislative Action! NYS Department of Health Administrative Proposals Regarding Early InterventionUpdated 4/7/24 NYSABA shares CASP and ACTS concerns about the proposed changes to Early Intervention that could impact the delivery of ABA services. See our official statement under the Public Policy tab.
Please click the following link to tell your legislators that you oppose these changes: https://oneclickpolitics.global.ssl.fastly.net/messages/edit?promo_id=22206
State Education Department Update - Guidance on Unlicensed ProfessionalsUpdated 9/27/23 NYSABA would like to thank our Public Policy Committee for advocating for and working collaboratively with the State Education Department (SED) to help resolve a long-standing issue. Yesterday, SED released its long-awaited guidance on the use of unlicensed personnel in the ABA tiered service delivery model. We would like to thank CASP and Autism Speaks for their continued collaboration with NYSABA and for their ongoing advocacy on this issue and many other issues that impact the autistic community. It is important that all Licensed Behavior Analysts and Certified Behavior Analyst Assistants read and understand this new guidance. As a member of NYSABA, your membership helps support this important and necessary work. Thank you! Please find the guidance here: https://www.op.nysed.gov/professions/licensed-behavior-analysts/professional-practice/guidance-on-the-roles-of-licensed-providers-and-unlicensed-personnel-in-delivering-aba-services
Use of Contingent Electric Skin ShockIn light of the current controversy surrounding the use of Contingent Electric Skin Shock and limited supports and services in New York, NYSABA, in collaboration with Drs. Noor Syed and Debbi Napolitano, are taking steps to address these issues.
The New York State Association for Behavior Analysis (NYSABA), in collaboration with Drs. Noor Syed & Debbi Napolitano, are conducting a survey to identify the knowledge and perspectives of New Yorkers on the use of aversive interventions with individuals who have been diagnosed intellectual and developmental disabilities (I/DD). We plan to collect information from those connected with this community in New York, including individuals who may have experienced contingent electric skin shock, families, community members, and NYSABA members regarding these issues.
Please consider making your voices heard by taking our brief, 10-minute survey. Data will be shared with the community at large and will inform NYSABA's position on use of aversive interventions.
Please contact Dr. Noor Syed ([email protected]) or Debbi Napolitano ([email protected]) with any questions. Survey can be found here: https://forms.gle/mLHAWxtphFvbQA416
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