New York Senators Probe Medicaid Home Health Contract

On Thursday, New York State Senators unveiled evidence related to a controversial contract process concerning the $11 billion Medicaid home health program.

One senator, clearly frustrated, called for a hearing in Lower Manhattan following ongoing debates about enhancing the personal assistance program for consumers.

Lawmakers spent considerable time questioning executives from Public Partnership LLC, represented by James McDonald, who has been awarded a no-bid contract to manage the Consumer Directed Personal Assistance Program (CDPAP). McDonald is also a member of the health committee.

Sen. James Skoufis (D-Orange), who chaired the session, led the pointed questioning. He highlighted a draft bill that appeared to grant McDonald’s contracts to PPL starting in April 2024, implying that the authorities had not seriously considered other companies. Ultimately, PPL was awarded the contract months later.

“We’ve had a draft bill linked to PPL since early April,” Skoufis claimed. “While the Senate pushed back, executives still referred to it as a non-bid contract.” He seemed incredulous, adding, “Then, somehow PPL won the award shortly after.”

The existence of this bill was initially reported in the Albany Times Union. It specified that the Department of Health should engage Public Partnership LLC to provide services across the state.

McDonald, however, said he had never seen the draft bill and was unsure of the contracting process.

“Senator, I’m not familiar with it, so I can’t comment on the draft bill,” he stated.

Interestingly, the governor reportedly called for significant changes to address the rampant waste, fraud, and abuse that had escalated from $3 billion in 2018 to $11 billion in 2024. The proposed reforms would entailing consolidating hundreds of intermediaries who acted as financial middlemen between Medicaid and home health aides.

Yet, many senators expressed discontent regarding the changes, especially since they had approved them as part of last year’s state budget.

During the hearing, PPL executives denied having contacted the governor’s office or the health department prior to the contracting process. Skoufis pressed them, asking, “Did the CEO not have even one conversation with anyone in the company before the budget was enacted in May?”

Patty Burns, PPL’s vice president of government affairs, responded that they did what was necessary. In a statement from Hochul’s office, they did not deny drafting the bill referenced by Skoufis. They maintained that the selection process for PPL was a routine procurement process completed without knowledge of eventual selection until it wrapped up.

“With the transition to a single financial intermediary and stronger state oversight, New York aims to protect home care users and workers more effectively,” the statement claimed.

Some lawmakers appeared visibly angry at McDonald, who seemed unprepared to provide specific data when pressed about the program’s hundreds of thousands of recipients and their caregivers.

“I don’t have those figures,” he admitted, when Sen. Gustavo Rivera (D-Bronx) asked for the number of workers paid back in early April.

This lack of data incited further outrage, with criticisms directed toward PPL for not adequately securing the data required for the transition to new intermediaries by the April 1 deadline.

Sen. Sheila Binaux (D-Nassau) accused McDonald of perpetuating misinformation about the contract process, questioning, “You’re not providing any numbers or data to counter the notion that this contract isn’t functioning correctly.”

Harlem’s Sen. Cordell Kurnean (D-Manhattan) described their responses as “inhumane” toward New Yorkers in need of care.

Skoufis might have refrained from calling McDonald a liar outright, but he characterized his assertions as “incredibly impossible.” Both he and Rivera vowed to continue investigating but left open the possibility of issuing subpoenas for more information.

“Many of the statements made are spectacular and, quite frankly, seem unbelievable,” Skoufis remarked, indicating their commitment to digging deeper into these matters.