S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   1099
 
                        2025-2026 Regular Sessions
 
                           I N  A S S E M B L Y
 
                              January 8, 2025
                                ___________
 
 Introduced by M. of A. McDONALD -- read once and referred to the Commit-
   tee on Aging
 
 AN  ACT to amend the elder law, in relation to information regarding the
   home energy assistance program for participants in the elderly pharma-
   ceutical insurance coverage program

   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section  1. Section 245 of the elder law, as added by a chapter of the
 laws of 2024 amending the elder law relating to the automatic  identifi-
 cation  and  enrollment  of  elderly  pharmaceutical  insurance coverage
 program enrollees in the home energy assistance program, as proposed  in
 legislative bills numbers S. 8760-A and A. 9369-A, is amended to read as
 follows:
   §  245.  [Automated  identification of] INFORMATION REGARDING THE HOME
 ENERGY ASSISTANCE PROGRAM FOR program participants. 1. For the  purposes
 of this section, the following terms shall have the following meanings:
   (a)  ["Office"]  "OTDA"  shall  mean the state office of temporary and
 disability assistance.
   (b) "Home energy assistance program" OR "HEAP" shall mean the  low-in-
 come  home  energy  assistance  program  implemented pursuant to section
 ninety-seven of the social services law.
   2. The department of health shall [update the  elderly  pharmaceutical
 insurance  coverage program application to allow] NOTIFY program partic-
 ipants [to consent, in a manner that is separate and  apart  from  other
 requests  for  consent  contained in the application, to the exchange of
 such participant's information to verify such  enrollee's]  AND  PROVIDE
 INFORMATION  REGARDING  eligibility AND HOW TO APPLY for the home energy
 assistance program.  [Upon receipt of such consent,  the  department  of
 taxation and finance shall confirm such participant's income at the time
 of  enrollment]  SUCH  INFORMATION  SHALL  BE PROVIDED WITH EACH ELDERLY
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD02732-01-5
 A. 1099                             2
              

 
 PHARMACEUTICAL INSURANCE COVERAGE PAPER APPLICATION THAT IS  DISTRIBUTED
 AND ALSO ANNUALLY TO ALL PROGRAM PARTICIPANTS.
   3.  The  department of health shall [coordinate] CONSULT with OTDA AND
 the office [to facilitate the secure transmission  of  data  through  an
 interface  with  the  office's information technology infrastructure] ON
 THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE NOTIFICATION TO PROGRAM  PARTICIPANTS  REFERENCED
 IN SUBDIVISION TWO OF THIS SECTION.
   4.  [No  less  than  once  per  month, the office, upon receipt of the
 required data elements from the department of health and the  department
 of  taxation  and  finance,  as  such  data  elements are defined by the
 office, shall conduct automated file matching to identify elderly  phar-
 maceutical insurance coverage program participants who are eligible for]
 IF  A  PARTICIPANT'S  HOUSEHOLD  APPLIES FOR AND IS ENROLLED IN the home
 energy assistance program[.  Within sixty days of receipt that an elder-
 ly pharmaceutical insurance coverage program  participant's  eligibility
 for  the  home  energy assistance program is confirmed, the office shall
 enroll such elderly pharmaceutical insurance  coverage  program  partic-
 ipant in the home energy assistance program.
   5.  Upon  automatic  enrollment in the home energy assistance program,
 the department of health], THE APPLICABLE LOCAL SOCIAL SERVICES DISTRICT
 shall provide written notification AND INFORMATION to the [elderly phar-
 maceutical insurance coverage program participant of their enrollment in
 such program and shall provide information regarding the program's bene-
 fits] PARTICIPANT'S HOUSEHOLD IN ACCORDANCE WITH OTDA REGULATIONS.
   [6. The office, in consultation with] 5. OTDA AND  the  department  of
 health,  [is] IN CONSULTATION WITH EACH OTHER, ARE authorized to promul-
 gate any rules and regulations necessary to carry out the provisions  of
 this section.
   §  2.  This  act  shall  take  effect on the same date and in the same
 manner as a chapter of the laws of 2024 amending the elder law  relating
 to the automatic identification and enrollment of elderly pharmaceutical
 insurance  coverage  program  enrollees  in  the  home energy assistance
 program, as proposed in legislative  bills  numbers  S.  8760-A  and  A.
 9369-A, takes effect.