i n dy e a s t e n d . c o m
the Independent
N ov e m b e r 2 2
2017
In Depth News
Compiled by Rick Murphy Housing Access for Veterans The number of homeless veterans in New York has dropped dramatically over the past five years, according to a report issued last week by State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli. Homeless veterans declined from 5765 in 2011 to 1248 individuals in 2016 in New York, a decrease of 78.4 percent during the time frame, according to US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) data. By comparison, New York State’s homeless population continues to be among the largest in the nation and, in recent years, has also been one of the fastest growing, with the number of homeless individuals rising by more than a third from 2011 to 2016. Due to federal funding uncertainty for programs that assist homeless veterans, some programs may be in jeopardy and lose their federal funding.
“The men and women who defend our nation often need support when they transition back into civilian life. For some veterans, it isn’t an easy road, but we’re turning a corner on reducing the number of veterans living on the streets,” DiNapoli said. “Local communities are playing a key role in helping veterans find a place to live, and we need to build on their progress through continued collaboration at the federal, state and local levels. Any cuts in federal support could undermine the good work being done.” While veteran homelessness exists in all states, the distribution among states has been uneven. Four states, California, Florida, New York, and Texas, accounted for half of the homeless veterans in the nation.
Veterans become homeless for many of the same economic reasons as civilians do – a lack of affordable housing, low wages, and long-term unemployment. As a result of exposure to combat and repeated deployments, however, veterans may suffer from other traumas that may increase the risk of homelessness.
Government Briefs
As part of the 2010 Federal Strategic Plan to Prevent and End Homelessness, HUD and the US Department of Veterans’ Affairs, along with several other federal agencies and the homeless assistance community, worked to expand and create programs to identify and connect homeless veterans with housing and supportive services, including health care, substance abuse treatment, and employment services.
For example, several municipalities have teamed with community organizations to identify all homeless veterans in their area. When combined with real-time shelter and street outreach data, shelter providers have been able to increase the number of dedicated beds for homeless veterans. Help For Severely Disabled Veterans Congressman Lee Zeldin announced that his bipartisan legislation (H.R.1005/S.324) to help severely disabled veterans on Long Island and across the country, by expanding access to adult day health care for disabled veterans who need extra assistance and special attention in their day-to-day lives, passed the Senate with strong bipartisan support. Service members who are 70 percent or more disabled from a service-connected injury often require significant assistance from others in order to carry out basic everyday tasks. Many times, the burden falls on family members of disabled veterans; some veterans may even need to reside in institutionalized facilities to receive the daily assistance of a trained medical professional. Both of these options can create financial and emotional hardships. One program that is currently available to help disabled veterans is adult day health care, which can be offered at state veterans homes across the United States. However, the expense of the program is oftentimes directly shouldered by the veteran and their family, which significantly limits the number of veterans who can enroll.
Adult day health care is currently only offered at three facilities in the United States; one being the Long Island State Veterans Home, which is located in the First Congressional District of New York, in Stony Brook. Congressman Zeldin’s bill would define the adult day health care program as a reimbursable treatment option through the Department of Veterans Affairs, which would guarantee that all severely disabled veterans, those who are 70 percent or more service-connected disabled, are able to access adult day health care at no cost to them. The bill would also help expand the program, which could be offered at any of the 153 state veterans homes across the country. “This is an important piece of legislation that provides a valuable and necessary service to our nation’s veterans, and I am pleased to announce that this bill passed the Senate,” Zeldin said.
“By expanding access to adult day health care programs, we can ensure that all veterans receive the best and most efficient services that provide veterans with necessary assistance that also allows them to maintain their independence. With Senate passage of this bill, we are now one step closer to expanding care for disabled veterans on Long Island and across our country, allowing each veteran a more fulfilling life, while keeping families together and strong. Expanding adult day health care for our disabled veterans is a top priority and I commend my colleagues in the Senate for acting promptly to pass this commonsense bill. Helping those who have sacrificed so much for us has always been a top concern, and I will continue to support legislation to give our nation’s veterans what they deserve.” Fred Sganga, executive director of Long Island State Veterans Home, said, “The Long Island State Veterans Home is tremendously grateful to Congressman Zeldin for supporting the mission, vision and values of our home. This new legislation will allow us to better serve our most disabled veterans while providing the much-needed
relief to families who serve as caregivers. No veteran should be left behind and we are grateful that Congressman Zeldin always makes our nation’s warriors his top priority.” Protection For Firefighters Assemblyman Fred Thiele announced that legislation he voted in favor of, which affords firefighters special protection while performing on-the-job duties, was signed into law last week by Governor Andrew Cuomo. The legislation ensures a person who intentionally obstructs the efforts of any firefighter performing emergency medical care is guilty of the crime of obstructing firefighting operations, a class A misdemeanor. Firefighters perform various important functions in their dayto-day routine and are protected by the law while in performance of these duties. However, there is a loophole that does not adequately protect a firefighter who is performing emergency services. The new bill closes that loophole. Testing For Contaminants Thiele also announced that the New York State Center for Clean Water Technology at Stony Brook University is focusing on developing and evaluating methods to remove emerging contaminants from drinking water supplies, with an initial focus on 1,4-dioxane. This effort represents the initial phase of a state-sponsored, multi-year program to proactively address emerging contaminants in drinking water.
The CCWT is soliciting proposals from water providers in NYS to install and test pilot-scale, advanced water treatment technologies to remove 1,4-dioxane from drinking water. The deadline for submission to the pilot grant program is Friday, December 15. The CCWT’s mission is to develop and commercialize affordable, high-performance drinking water quality protection and restoration technologies that are suitable for widespread deployment. 17