On April 3rd, the $178 billion State Budget for State Fiscal Year (SFY) 2021, which began April 1st, was passed by the New York State Legislature and signed by the Governor.
Due to economic impacts from the COVID-19 crisis, the State anticipates a revenue shortfall of $10 billion and an overall budget deficit of up to $15 billion. The Budget authorizes a $10 billion reduction in spending in the absence of federal assistance, granting the Budget Director the broad authority to control spending throughout the year by making quarterly spending adjustments based on actual revenue. The legislature will have the ability to approve a different plan, but if it does not, the Executive plan will go into effect.
The enacted Budget includes many of the Medicaid Redesign Team (MRT) II panel’s recommendations to contain Medicaid spending growth.However, the Budget also proposes to delay the effective dates of some of these provisions, which may allow the State to access a 6.2% federal enhanced match percentage (FMAP) increase, representing approximately $5 billion in new federal funds if the state of emergency lasts through the end of the year. The total savings for SFY 2021 from enacted MRT II recommendations is budgeted at $2.2 billion.
Attached is a summary of health-related provisions included in the Budget’s appropriations bills and Article VII legislation. The full SFY 2021 budget is available here.