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LIVEON NY AND AGE STRONG NY CAMPAIGN CELEBRATES RESTORED FUNDING FOR OLDER ADULT SERVICES IN NEW CITY BUDGET
NEW YORK, NY — Today, LiveOn NY and community organizations in the Age Strong NY campaign celebrated the passage of a revised New York City Budget, which restores funding to critical infrastructure and programs for older adults, and averted the closure of 90 older adult centers.
In total, the budget sets aside:
$4.7 million for HDM
$2 million for case management
$5 million for older adult center infrastructure
$104 million to fix the fiscal cliff
The Age Strong NY campaign was instrumental in elevating the needs of aging New Yorkers, and calling attention to the original devastating cuts to services and programs throughout the budget process — culminating in a June citywide Day of Action where advocates were joined by elected officials to demand funding for aging services.
LiveOn’s executive director, Allison Nickerson, released the following statement:
“In these uncertain times for government funded programs, we are celebrating a budget that responds to our urgent needs. The updated NYC budget has averted the closure of 90 older adult centers and has added funding to the home delivered meals program, case management, and efforts to repair older adult centers across the city.
This is a step in the right direction — but there is still more work to be done. New York City is rapidly aging, and older New Yorkers are still struggling to stay in their homes, afford food and basic necessities with the rising cost of living. We look forward to working alongside our champions in the City Council and the Mayor’s office to find solutions that will continue to support the aging community in New York — present and future.”
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