Emergency management urges Allegany County to oppose state cut to ambulance Medicaid crossover payments
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Summary
Deputy OEM director Bonnie Vanhausen told the Public Safety Committee the governor's executive budget would remove the Medicaid "crossover" payment that covers roughly 20% of ambulance bills for Medicare/Medicaid beneficiaries, and the committee agreed to draft a letter and pursue a resolution opposing the change.
Bonnie Vanhausen, deputy director of the Office of Emergency Management, told the Allegany County Public Safety Committee on March 4 that the New York State executive budget proposes eliminating Medicaid "crossover" payments that currently pick up about 20% of ambulance charges when a patient has both Medicare and Medicaid. "They would like to cut that 20% out of the budget so ambulances wouldn't receive that," Vanhausen said, warning the change would "be detrimental to our system, whether it's a commercial or volunteer" provider.
The committee discussed options and agreed to prepare formal opposition. Chair Steven Havey said the county would draft language for a resolution and take the matter to the county administrator and NYSAC; Vanhausen said state associations including NYSVARA (New York State Volunteer Ambulance Association) and commercial-provider groups were already lobbying and had templates for local use. Committee members asked staff to circulate draft language quickly so a resolution could be considered at the next committee of the whole.
Why it matters: Ambulance services in Allegany County are a mix of volunteer and commercial providers that rely on multiple revenue streams. Vanhausen said the proposed change would remove an expected payer for transports involving dual‑eligible patients, reducing reimbursement to agencies and potentially creating budget shortfalls. The committee's decision to pursue a resolution aligns county leadership with statewide advocates asking the governor and legislature to restore or preserve the crossover payment.
Next steps: Committee staff will work with the county administrator and the committee to produce a draft resolution and a letter for the chair to sign, and legislators present said they would raise the issue with NYSAC during upcoming meetings.
