In New York, a stark controversy has erupted around the overhaul of a Medicaid-funded home care program worth $9 billion, a shakeup aimed at saving the state money but one heavy with legal skirmishes. Crain's New York reports that the program in question, the Consumer Directed Personal Assistance Program (CDPAP), is set for a significant change as Public Partnerships LLC (PPL), a Georgia-based firm, is set to take control next week. This shift will lead to the closure of hundreds of fiscal intermediary companies currently playing a role in the program. Freedom Care, the largest of these companies in the state, alleged in a lawsuit that a “sham bidding process” led to the selection of PPL.
The legal pushback against the state's decision comes amid allegations from Carlos Martinez, CEO of the fiscal intermediary Bridges, who claimed, per Crain's New York, that PPL was preordained to win the contract months before a formal request for proposals was actually issued. The department has defended itself against these accusations, with New York's Medicaid Director Amir Bassiri stating in an affidavit that no improper communication occurred with PPL during the bidding process, signaling that the allegations of collusion are "meritless."
The intricacies of the state's process have not dampened criticism. Freedom Care's attorney, Akiva Shapiro, bluntly contested the state’s denial of any wrongdoing, saying, "The state can deny, deny, deny all it wants, but it has no response to the smoking gun evidence of bid-rigging we submitted to the court." Given these allegations, the planned transitions for CDPAP are nonetheless moving forward, with PPL expected to start integrating users into its platform and taking charge of home aide paychecks by March 1, as detailed by Crain's New York.
Building on this, a robust campaign against the contract has been fostered by home care advocates, which includes substantial investment in television and digital ads. Bryan O’Malley, leading the charge as the director of the Alliance to Protect Home Care, argued to the Times Union, "It’s been the worst-kept secret in Albany for months that this was a backroom deal for (Public Partnerships)." Echoing these sentiments, Maria Perrin, president of Public Partnerships, ensured in a new affidavit that no early notification regarding the contract win had been provided to the company.
Underpinning these events is a pressing financial narrative: the CDPAP program's costs skyrocketing from $2.5 billion in 2019 to more than $9 billion. It has been indicated that the state Governor Kathy Hochul's plan to condense the program to a single fiscal intermediary would save about $500 million each year. According to the state's calculations, Public Partnerships' bid promised marked savings for the state, cutting intermediary costs from between $150 and $1,050 per month for each program member to a flat rate of $68.50, positioning its tender as the most economically favorable option—a detail highlighted by the state's filing in its defense against the protests from Freedom Care.
