Organizations that offer support services to people with intellectual and developmental disabilities are bracing for a $75 million cut in services for care coordination organizations.

 


What You Need To Know


  • Care coordination organizations could be facing a 16 percent cut.

  • Parents are worried what this means for children with developmental and intelluctual disabilities.

  • The pandemic has created a serious budget crunch for the state.

 

For parents like Sara Berg, this could have a real impact. 

"I work full time and it's hard to do it all especially when you're trying to balance working full time, balance other kids, balance your child with a disability," Berg said. 

An Albany resident, Berg is worried about what services will be available for her 11-year-old son with disabilities if the state cuts $75 million from wrap-around services for people with intelluctual and developmental disabilities. 

"There's a lot of things I can do myself," she said. "I can look for services, I can look for grants, but it's a full-time job and to have someone act in that role is amazing."

The cuts could be announced as early as Wednesday and would come as the state is facing a fiscal crisis due to the coronavirus pandemic. The loss of funding could affect tens of thousands of people. 

"We're basically talking about everybody with a disability in New York state, so it's ranging from children as young as 3 and adults who elderly and have a different set of needs than the kids do," she said. 

But for parents like Berg, the cuts may provide yet another dose of uncertainty as the school year remains up in the air. 

"You've always had school as that point of stability and for a few hours a day that your child is going to be somewhere safe, where they're learning, they're having fun -- taking that away is going to create a lot uncertainty," she said. 

The Cuomo administration in June announced millions of dollars in aid to cities was being withheld as the state awaits a potential infusion of cash from the federal government. For now, it's not clear if Congress will approve direct aid for states.