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Lawmakers endorse 7.8% COLA for direct-care workforce, urge crisis-intervention changes
Summary
Members of the New York Legislature's Mental Hygiene joint conference committee voiced bipartisan support for a 7.8% cost-of-living adjustment for direct-care workers, pressed to preserve funding in the final state budget and backed measures such as "Daniel's Law" and law-enforcement involvement in crisis planning.
Members of the New York Legislature's Mental Hygiene joint conference committee signaled bipartisan support for a 7.8% cost-of-living adjustment for direct-care workers and urged continued investment in crisis-intervention services as the Legislature negotiates the 2025 state budget.
The committee co-chair, Assemblymember Joanne Simon, described the session as a step toward a three-way agreement with the Executive and said members “look forward to continuing conversations with the Executive to get to a 3 way agreement on the items of importance to the legislature.”
Why it matters: Direct support staff — often called direct service providers or DSPs — deliver hands-on care in mental health, addiction recovery and developmental-disability settings. Lawmakers said failing to match recent inflation amounts to a real pay cut and risks worker retention in…
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