The Latest From DOH – Late March 2025
The Situation Report | March 31, 2025
On March 27, 2025, HCANYS and other associations representing the long-term care continuum met with the state Department of Health (DOH) Office of Aging and Long Term Care (OALTC). The DOH holds meetings with the associations every two weeks to provide updates and give the participants the opportunity to raise any issues.
Some of the items discussed at this meeting included:
Surveys
Valerie Deetz, deputy director of OALTC, announced that the daily survey for nursing homes and adult care facilities will end April 1 and move to a weekly survey on April 8. A Dear Administrator Letter will go out on March 31. There will be an IHANS alert, tentatively scheduled for Wednesday or Thursday. announcing a webinar to go over the new look and feel.
Home care providers will continue the weekly survey; the exception is that OALTC will be looking at the questions, such as the COVID reporting requirements, adding some new meaningful questions and removing others. Changes may be coming in the next 30 days, but not guaranteed. HCANYS has long advocated for the 13 questions to be removed from the survey; we will continue our efforts to remove these specific questions.
DOH Lunch & Learn Education Series
Millie Ferriter, director of the Division of Home & Community Based Services Surveillance, announced that the next webinar, on tuberculosis, is scheduled on April 29 from 1-2 pm. Registration is available here. The June webinar is targeted for Certified Home Health Agencies (CHHAs). HCANYS will update members upon its announcement.
Hospice and Palliative Care
Kara Travis, director of the Center for Hospice and Palliative Care, said that the Center’s second road trip will be a two-day visit to Long Island in early April, including a state run VA Hospital, to visit hospice beds and meet with providers.
Master Plan
Andrew Lebwohl, director of the Center for the Master Plan for Aging, announced that the final draft report is with the New York State Office for Aging and the Chamber. The final report includes all proposals received from peer agencies. HCANYS looks forward to sharing the report with members once published.
HCS Reminder
Providers are strongly urged to ensure complete profiles on the Health Commerce System, particularly up-to-date names of staff, cell phone numbers, and email addresses. It is imperative for the DOH to be able to reach a provider at any given time.
HCANYS likewise asks every HCANYS organizational member that enrolls in the HCS to please verify and, as necessary, update the information on your organization and your key contacts on the HCS site, especially the person or persons mandated for 24x7 contact availability. As HCANYS serves as a collaborative and contracted partner to the state and to NYC for health emergency preparedness, it is essential to role of the home and community-based services sector to maintain updated and fully functional HCS participation information.
If you are experiencing any issues with your HCS account or have been closed out, please contact
For further information on DOH’s most recent HCS changes, please email the HCS Account Management Unit (CAMU) at