New APHC Ad: "Tell Governor Hochul And The State Legislature It's Not Too Late To Stop Big Business From Hijacking Our Home Care"

Alliance to Protect Home Care's Raises Alarm on Gov. Hochul's Catastrophic Deal with PPL

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ALBANY, N.Y., Nov. 12, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, The Alliance to Protect Home Care announced that it is launching its latest digital and TV ad as part of its larger campaign to protect New York's Consumer Directed Personal Assistance Program (CDPAP). Running across New York, the new seven-figure ad campaign raises the alarm on PPL, the controversial out-of-state company that Governor Hochul selected to take over New York's home care program:

"Governor Hochul plans to hand over New York's entire home care program to PPL, an out-of-state company backed by private equity. PPL claims: "We've implemented more than 50 programs in the last decade, and you know, they're going well." Really?

In Pennsylvania PPL's mismanagement cost taxpayers $7 million a year, and caregivers sued PPL for wage theft. In New Jersey, a disability rights alliance accused PPL of egregious fiscal and operational failures. In Colorado, clients called PPL unresponsive, error-prone, a nightmare, giving it the lowest rating among home care providers.

PPL means increased costs, unpaid caregivers, operational failures, and a nightmare for New York. Tell Governor Hochul and the state legislature it's not too late to stop big business from hijacking our home care. Call 1-877-K-HOCHUL today." 

The latest ad follows months of growing opposition to Governor Hochul's plan to cut New York's home care program. Elected officials from both parties and at every level of government have found rare common ground in opposing Gov. Hochul's plans, including: 15 New York City Council Members, 31 Assembly Members, 49 State Senators and the entire GOP congressional delegation.

"PPL has been a disaster practically everywhere they've worked. Hundreds of thousands of elderly and disabled New Yorkers who rely on the state's home care program can't afford to have a company like PPL in charge of their health," said Bryan O'Malley, the executive director of the Alliance to Protect Home Care. "Governor Hochul and the state legislature still have time to stop this plan before it becomes another PPL disaster."

On September 30th, Governor Hochul announced PPL as the company selected to run the state's entire consumer directed home care program - eliminating hundreds of small, local businesses in the process. Based in Georgia and backed by private-equity investors, PPL has a checkered history and a track record of failure:

• In Pennsylvania, PPL became the single fiscal intermediary and the state's auditor general issued a scathing report that found PPL's "transition was, by all accounts, a disaster" and cost the state taxpayers an additional $7 million per year (Bangor Daily News, 11/22/13)
• In Pennsylvania, PPL is still fighting a class-action lawsuit because they allegedly "refused to pay workers for overtime." (Business Wire, 05/13/2017)
• In New Jersey, the Alliance for the Betterment of Citizens with Disabilities (ABCD) released a report detailing the "egregious fiscal and operational failures" by PPL in managing two DHS programs. (Alliance for the Betterment of Citizens with Disabilities, Advocacy Paper, 01/20/20)
• In Colorado, PPL scored the lowest of the three Financial Management Services Agencies assessed by a Colorado Department of Health Care Policy & Financing survey on Consumer Directed Attendant Support Services (CDASS) customer satisfaction. (CDASS, 2016 Client Satisfaction Survey Report, 02/03/17)

The Consumer Directed Personal Assistance program provides essential, personalized care to elderly, sick, or disabled New Yorkers in the comfort of their own home. The program's home care workers help patients live independently and with dignity, assisting with everything from making meals and eating, to taking medications, to bathing, dressing, and tasks typically reserved for a nurse.

About The Alliance to Protect Home Care
Founded by the Consumer Directed Personal Assistance Association of New York State, The Alliance to Protect Home Care is a coalition composed of New Yorkers who rely on home care, the caregivers who provide home care, and small business owners. Visit www.protecthomecare.org.

SOURCE The Alliance to Protect Home Care