CREATIVE ARTS THERAPY: Two lawmakers are hoping to include creative arts therapy on the state’s Medicaid providers list to ensure the services are covered under commercial health insurance. There are two bills that Assemblymember Harry Bronson and state Sen. Samra Brouk, chair of the Senate Committee on Mental Health, are focusing on. One would ensure reimbursement for creative arts services by commercial insurance carriers. The other would require direct reimbursement to creative arts therapists under Medicaid. “So why is this important? It's important because of access. If you can't pay for your care, then you don't have access to that care. It's also about access because in many of our communities, we have a desert of mental health professionals,” Bronson, a Rochester-area Democrat, said. Brouk said that for a long while, many advocates had to convince lawmakers that there was a mental health crisis. “The problem is with everyone on every floor of this Capitol that agrees with us that we are in a mental health crisis, that we are in a mental health care workforce shortage. We still don't have the courage to do the simple things that we know need to get done to be able to meet this moment,” Brouk, another Rochester lawmaker, said. — Shawn Ness NEW YORK’S HISTORY: Hochul announced today the inclusion of 11 projects from Buffalo to New York City to the New York State Historic Preservation Awards. The projects include a revitalization of a Newburgh neighborhood, a Buffalo candy shop’s restoration and a scholarship for the city’s Puerto Rican casitas. “Historic preservation projects take an immense amount of time, resources and dedication,” Hochul said in a statement. “From Buffalo to New York City, the 11 projects we’re honoring this year all symbolize critical parts of our storied history in New York State.” The preservation awards were created in 1980 by the Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation to commend local historical landmarks. — Shawn Ness A POTENTIAL DOWNSTATE DEAL: Hochul and lawmakers are close on a deal to save SUNY’s Downstate Medical Center that would include a $300 million transformation fund coupled with $100 million in operating aid to cover its annual deficit, POLITICO reports. The deal is expected to include a 16-member commission, appointed by state and local leaders, that would establish long-term plans for the hospital, according to state lawmakers. The money would stave off any closure or changes to the facility until June 30, 2025, said Brooklyn Assemblymember Brian Cunningham. It’s a major win for United University Professions who joined forces with state Sen. Zellnor Myrie at the forefront of the fight against plans laid out by SUNY earlier in the year to relocate most of its services. Kowal said he is pleased with the deal that’s been reported and is hopeful the final agreement will include the commission. “We welcome what appears to be a process for real planning that will result in an even better hospital with inpatient care and even better training for the next generation of health care professionals at the medical school,” Kowal told POLITICO. — Katelyn Cordero MORE ON MAYORAL CONTROL: A deal has yet to be struck on whether the state budget will include an extension to mayoral control, and some lawmakers are upset about the issue being brought back into the budget process — rather than deliberated on by the Legislature after the budget is passed. Assembly Education Chair Michael Benedetto said he is supportive of an extension for mayoral control, but believes the issue shouldn’t have been part of budget negotiations. “We should continue [mayoral control] and stop playing games with the mayor and the school system in the City of New York,” Benedetto told POLITICO. “However, it’s the job of the Legislature to debate and enact mayoral control the way we see fit and not for the governor to put into the budget.” During a radio appearance on WNYC’s Brian Lehrer Show, Hochul said they are close to striking a deal between the Legislature, the mayor’s office, education advocates and labor unions regarding an extension that would include accountability on the state’s class size mandate. “I feel confident that it’ll meet the needs, and make sure that the law we passed two years ago that deals with class sizes … is being adhered to,” Hochul said. “And the mayor knows that. We are structuring a very complex deal here, but I think ultimately — is everybody happy? Never — but compromise is important, and I think we will get to a very good place.” — Katelyn Cordero
| 
