LiveOn NY (CSCS)

Background Today, through our network and initiatives, LiveOn NY serves all the older New Yorkers from every community and socioeconomic background across New York State. We have a membership base of over 100 organizations that provide more than 1000 community based programs, which range from individual community-based centers to large multi-service organizations providing services including senior centers, meals-on wheels, elder abuse support, affordable senior housing, caregiving services, intergenerational programs, creative aging, long term care services, and case management. Together with our members, we reach roughly 500,000 older adults annually.2022 Accomplishments 1. Advocacy:In New York City- $60 million in baselined funding for human services workers in NYC (thanks to our partnership and advocacy with the Human Services Council) Continued commitment to the previously announced home-delivered meal reimbursement rate increase totaling $2.3 million in new funding in FY22, and $9.4 million in FY23. $14.9 million, baselined, for Recovery Meal Transition, encompassing $8.8 million for home-delivered meals, and $6 million for case management. $3.2 million, baselined, for Geriatric Mental Health expansion Restored funding of $32 million for all aging discretionary initiativesAcross New York State-We expanded our advocacy efforts at the state level, including ensuring that the Fiscal Year 2023 state budget included a $500 million investment in the approved Fiscal Year 2023 state budget for Cost of Living Adjustments (COLAs), at 5.4%, for state contracted human services workers, the first significant COLA in years. This was the result of the Human Services Council-led Just Pay campaign, which LiveOn NY was proud to support.2. EducationThrough training and technical support, LiveOn worked intensively to support and empower the entire field as New York began to slowly emerge, reopen, and rebuild in a post-pandemic world. We provided spaces for aging service providers to learn from their colleagues as they navigated unprecedented COVID-19-related challenges. We offered educational opportunities to 568 professionals a record for the 2nd year in a row through our 32nd Annual Conference on Aging. Providing technical assistance/training to approximately 1,300 professionals through a variety of methods, such as through 6 workgroups (Action Committee, Boots on the Ground Roundtable [BOTG], Housing Committee, State Nonprofits, Executive Leadership Council, and Reopening Committee), as well as peer-to-peer training of nonprofit professionals who provide services to older adults. Supported member agencies through the Citys re-contracting process for all Older Adult Centers and NORCS.3. Benefits OutreachIn 2022 this program provided SNAP outreach to 216,881 older New Yorkers far more that the original 50,000 anticipated. Such efforts included sending materials to over 10,000 (i.e. hard copy flyers and emails containing digital flyers) to older adults, which greatly exceeds the initial 6500 target number. In addition, we provided screening assistance to 2,443 older adults for SNAP eligibility. We also helped a total of 1,584 older New Yorkers seek SNAP benefits, including assisting 1,060 older adults file applications, 325 with reauthorizations, and filing change forms for 199 clients. 4. Reframing Aging NYCLiveOn launched a Reframing Aging NYC initiative through the support of private funding and in collaboration with the Gerontological Society of America (GSA) and other partners. Via direct engagement and through our 30 Reframers, we made 238 Reframing engagements; hosted 2 training webinars that drew approximately 200 attendees; and launched our Online Reframing Aging Resource Center. We plan to build on this momentum and have an exciting roster of new activities that we plan to implement in the coming year. Through these programmatic efforts, LiveOn along with its members and partners are enabling older adults to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic, build resiliency, and create an even better of continuum of care and support than ever before.