NY budget keeps 5% Family Care rate bump

New York’s Family Care program could expand if a proposed funding increase, including a 5% rate bump, remains in the final state budget due April 1. Disabilities Beat reporting spotlights the program as budget negotiations continue between the governor and Legislature.

Family Care allows people with intellectual and developmental disabilities to live with a family, a “family care provider,” rather than in a group home or other certified residential setting. OPWDD’s provider-facing description emphasizes pairing children, adolescents, and adults with a “caring and stable home environment,” framing the model as a pathway to “community living” for people with developmental disabilities. All current budget proposals include a 5% rate increase for Family Care, according to OPWDD, as the April 1 deadline approaches.

The immediate policy question is whether the 5% increase stays in the final budget. Providers interviewed in the reporting argue that rate increases would help expand capacity. One operational pressure point cited is the need for resources to bring homes “up to code,” which can be a gating factor for program growth. OPWDD Commissioner Willow Baer is quoted describing excitement about additional investment and gratitude that both houses appear to have kept the investment in place as of the reporting.

The reporting also outlines what it takes to enter the program as a family care provider. The process is described as lengthy, with certification requirements that include paperwork, background checks, safety inspections, and training, including CPR. The program structure also expects providers to have income outside Family Care payments. Payments cover room, board, and support based on a person’s needs. Participants may separately receive benefits including Medicaid and day programs, meaning the Family Care payment is not the sole funding stream supporting an individual’s total service plan.

From a scale perspective, OPWDD reporting cited in the story says that in 2024, more than 1,000 people were enrolled in Family Care. The same reporting notes the program accounted for less than 1% of housing spending for nearly 35,000 disabled people statewide. That context frames why relatively modest budget decisions may matter for the program’s growth trajectory compared with larger, more established residential modalities.