New York Enacts Special Needs Assisted Living Voucher Demonstration Program for Persons with Dementia

Those with Alzheimer's disease and/or dementia who can no longer privately pay for a Special Needs Assisted Living Residence (SNALR) are often left with no choice but to enroll in Medicaid. This enrollment frequently puts into motion a transition from a private pay residence at an assisted living community to a skilled nursing facility. A group of stakeholders has worked alongside New York's Department of Health (DOH) to explore opportunities to prevent such moves and to ensure residents continue to receive care in less restrictive settings. In response, the State of New York has enacted the Special Needs Assisted Living Voucher Demonstration Program for Persons with Dementia . The 2018-19 state budget authorized the DOH to establish this program to subsidize the cost of a SNALR for those with Alzheimer's disease and/or dementia. Through the demonstration, the DOH may issue up to 200 vouchers and subsidize 25 to 75 percent of the regional average private pay rate for the monthly cost of a SNALR for an approved applicant. An applicant must not be Medicaid eligible and must have some financial resources — less than or equal to six months of the average monthly cost of a SNALR for the region in which they reside. To date, over 50 communities across New York have attested that they will participate in the voucher program, which has budget authority for two years. For more information on the voucher program or for details about eligibility, please contact Argentum New York at (518)-465-8303 or visit ny.argentum.org .