Weekly News from State Senator Gustavo Rivera!

 

8 BILLS PASSED THE THIRD HEALTH COMMITTEE MEETING OF 2025

This week, Senator Rivera held the third Health Committee meeting of the year, where 8 bills were passed, including:

• S.3100: This bill will require insurance companies to cover additional asthma treatments.

• S.1855: This bill will require the state board of medicine to adopt a Zero Tolerance Policy for sexual misconduct and that patients be made aware of the protections afforded to them during any medical exam.

Check out here Senator Rivera's post on Instagram for more details.

This week, Senator Rivera participated in the Legislative Public Hearing on the 2025 Executive Budget Proposals on Health and Medicaid

During the first panel of the day, Senator Rivera questioned State Health Commissioner James McDonald about the Executive's decision to transition School Based Health Centers' reimbursement model from fee-for-service to managed care starting on April 1st. The Commissioner's response was surprising since he recognized that this transition was not supported by anyone outside this administration (watch the video here). Senator Rivera has two bills (S.1224 and S.3547) that could keep these centers operating as they are now, ensuring that thousands of vulnerable children are not left without basic healthcare access.

Regarding the CDPA program transition to a single intermediary, Senator Rivera in an exchange with the State's Medicaid Director Amir Bassiri asserted that the April 1st deadline is not realistic given that there are only 49 days left to complete the transition and thousands of consumers that still need to register under PPL. Senator Rivera believes that the timeline needs to be reconsidered and that his bill, the CDPAP Accountability Act (S1189) is a reasonable alternative that could provide the necessary stability to the program.

SENATOR RIVERA WELCOMES SOCCER CHAMPIONS OF THE FORDHAM PREPARATOY SCHOOL TO THE SENATE CHAMBERS

Last Monday, Senator Rivera welcomed the Soccer Team of the Fordham Preparatory School to the Senate Chambers to congratulate them on their 2024 Catholic High School Athletic Association State Championship Title. Congratulations to the entire team, coaches and families who worked hard for this amazing achievement.

Last Friday, Senator Rivera and his team had a great day helping constituents apply for the rent freeze (SCRIE, DRIE) and property tax break programs (SCHE). A big thank you to Part of the Solution (POTS) and NYC Department of Finance for partnering with us on another successful event!

SATURDAY 02/22: 31st BRONX PARKS SPEAK UP! 

THE RIGHT TO COUNSEL COALITION & JUST FIX RELAUNCHED: "EVICTION FREE NYC"

How does Eviction Free NYC help?

• Eligibility Screener: Eviction Free NYC helps you learn if you’re eligible for a free lawyer under NYC’s Right to Counsel law.

• Step-By-Step Guide: We’ll walk you through where to go in housing court, what to expect, and what next steps to take.

• Connect to Community Support: Based on your zip code, we’ll provide you with information on how to contact a tenant organization in your area.

For more info, click here

The MTA is seeking input on which stations to prioritize for accessibility improvements over the next five years. The proposed 2025-2029 Capital Plan identified an initial 30 stations, and the MTA plans to make at least an additional 30 stations accessible, for a total of more than 60 stations. With these investments, approximately 70% of all subway rides will take place to or from accessible stations.

Check this link for more info and to share your input.

UPDATE: REDUCED-FARE OMNY CARDS

Reduced-Fare customers can now tap to pay with OMNY. With OMNY, you can:

• Pay 12 fares in seven days, and the rest of your rides for those seven days are free.
• Skip the vending machine and load your card online with a free OMNY account.
• Get the same free transfers you did with MetroCard.

Find more info here and join the next MTA webinar to discuss the transition from MetroCard to OMNY, including how to spend down your MetroCard balances and utilize the new benefits of OMNY. Register here!