April 14, 2025 | Volume 10, Issue No. 14

State Budget Discussions Ongoing - Critical Need for HCANYS Members to Continue No-Pause Advocacy 

HCANYS will keep members closely apprised of all developments; it is essential that members continue unabated in their advocacy for home care funding and programmatic priorities. 

CDPAP SFI -- Litigation Alert: Preliminary Injunction Granted 

HCANYS continues to monitor these developments and will provide updated information as it becomes available. 

CMS Issues Proposed FY 2026 Hospice Payment Rule 

The U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) has released its hospice proposed rule (CMS–1835-P) to update the fiscal year (FY) 2026 (October 1, 2025 through September 30, 2026) Medicare payment rates and the wage index for hospices serving Medicare beneficiaries. 

CMS Releases CY 2026 Medicare Advantage Plan and Part D Final Rule

According to CMS, Medicare Advantage (MA) plans can expect a payment increase of 5.03% in 2026, more than double what the previous administration proposed. In the final days of the previous Administration, CMS proposed a 2.23% funding increase for MA plans. The payment increase is significantly more than MA plans received in previous years. 

The Latest From DOH - April 2025

On April 10, 2025, HCANYS and other associations representing the long-term care continuum met with the state Department of Health (DOH) Office of Aging and Long Term Care (OALTC). The DOH holds meetings with the associations every two weeks to provide updates and give the participants the opportunity to raise any issues.

Influenza Report - Week Ending April 4, 2025

During the week ending April 4, 2025 influenza activity was categorized as geographically widespread. This is the seventeenth week widespread activity has been reported this season.