Res 0782-2025

Whereas, Article 6 of the Public Health law provides the statutory authority for State aid for general public health work; and Whereas, Under Article 6, counties with a population of over 1,000,000 receive a flat base grant equal to 65 cents per person; and Whereas, Eligible expenses are reimbursed by the State 100% up to the amount of the base grant; and Whereas, The per-capita based grant results in New York City receiving a reimbursement rate that is less than 100% of the services rendered; and Whereas, When a county health department's spending on covered services exceeds the amount of its base grant the State will reimburse that county for a certain percentage of the costs that exceed the base grant; and Whereas, In 2019 then-Governor Andrew Cuomo reduced the reimbursement rate for New York City by 16%, from 36% down to 20%; and Whereas, New York City was the only municipality to have its reimbursement rate reduced; and Whereas, Prior to the 2019 reduction in the reimbursement rate the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene (DOHMH) paid 64% of post-base grant costs; and Whereas, After the 2019 reduction in the reimbursement rate DOHMH paid 80% of post-base grant costs; and Whereas, As a result of then-Governor Cuomo's reduction in the reimbursement rate, New York City lost more than $62 million in funding for essential city public health programs; and Whereas, The loss of funding resulting from the reduced reimbursement rate has led directly to a loss of funding for essential programs including family and reproductive healthcare communicable disease control, chronic disease prevention, community health assessments, emergency preparedness and many more; and Whereas, New York City does receive direct federal funding for a number of core public health services; and Whereas, Article 6 requires health departments to account for federal grants when seeking reimbursements; and Whereas, Under Article 6, federal grants are deducted from the reimbursable amount when the city submits a reimbursement claim; and Whereas, Federal funding will not make up for the funds the DOHMH has lost as a result of the reimbursement cuts; and Whereas, A.2705, introduced by Assembly Member Jessica Gonz�lez-Rojas and pending in the New York State Assembly, and its companion bill S.4801, introduced by Senator Gustavo Rivera and pending in the New York State Senate, would restore the reimbursement rate to no less than 36%; now, therefore, be it Resolved, That the Council of the City of New York calls on the New York State Legislature to pass, and the Governor to sign, A.2705/S.4801, relating to the amount of state aid reimbursement for public health services by a municipality in the city of New York when the municipality is providing some or all of certain identified core public health services. LS #18951 2/24/2025 EHC/CP