Objective

To assess the extent of implementation of the five recommendations included in our initial audit report, Monitoring of Select Programs (Report 2020-S-47).

About the Program

The New York State Office for the Aging (NYSOFA) helps New York residents aged 60 or older be as independent as possible for as long as possible through advocacy and the development and delivery of person-centered, consumer-oriented, and cost-effective policies and programs. NYSOFA’s overall goal is to improve access to, and availability of, appropriate non-medical support services for older individuals to maximize their ability to age in their community and avoid higher levels of care and/or publicly financed care. Programs are administered at the county level through a network of 59 Area Agencies on Aging (AAAs), which provide services either directly or through contracted providers.

NYSOFA’s Community Services Program encompasses a range of specialized programs for older adults, including the Expanded In-Home Services for the Elderly Program (EISEP) and Community Services for the Elderly Program (CSE). Both EISEP and CSE aim to provide support and/or services to older adults who need assistance to maintain their independence at home. Examples of services offered by both programs include home-delivered meals, nutrition counseling, transportation services, and personal care. If an AAA is unable to fulfill a client’s request for services, the client may be placed on a wait list. According to written testimony by the Association on Aging in New York at the 2023-24 Joint Legislative Budget Hearing on Human Services, the 59 AAAs reported that almost 10,000 older New Yorkers are currently waiting for services. NYSOFA’s 2021-22 and 2022-23 enacted budgets contained appropriations of $15 million, plus an additional $8 million, to specifically fund services for clients who are eligible for but not receiving services. The 2023-24 total budget appropriation of $310.8 million for NYSOFA’s Community Services Program included about $77 million and $38 million to EISEP and CSE, respectively. Of the total 2023-24 budget appropriation, $23 million is for Unmet Need.

The objective of our initial audit, issued January 21, 2022, was to determine whether NYSOFA’s policies and procedures for select programs were adequate to ensure AAAs are appropriately monitored and the older New York population is adequately served. It covered the period from April 2017 through July 2021. Overall, the audit found that weaknesses in NYSOFA’s methodology for allocating Unmet Need funds to AAAs and in its oversight of AAAs, potentially undermining its goal of reducing or eliminating reported Unmet Need. Despite receiving $15 million in appropriations intended to reduce or eliminate reported Unmet Need for each of the State fiscal years 2019-20, 2020-21, and 2021-22, NYSOFA based its annual allocations to the AAAs on 2017-18 Unmet Need data – which not only was outdated but did not account for the likely greater need for home services during the pandemic years. Further, NYSOFA did not adhere to its policies and procedures for program and fiscal monitoring of the AAAs’ administration of the EISEP and CSE programs. Specifically, NYSOFA did not perform annual on-site evaluations for all 59 AAAs as required by its policies and procedures, leaving NYSOFA with no assurance that AAAs were adequately monitoring the services provided on behalf of older adults.

Key Finding

NYSOFA has made limited progress in addressing the issues we identified in the initial audit. Of the initial report’s five audit recommendations, three were partially implemented and two were not implemented.

Key Recommendation

Officials are given 30 days after the issuance of this report to provide information on any actions planned to address the unresolved issues discussed in this follow-up.