From the moment New York State proposed shifting the CDPAP (Consumer Directed Personal Assistance Program) to a single statewide provider, PPL, the Disabled community sounded the alarm. We warned that eliminating Consumer choice and control would jeopardize the health, safety, and independence of elderly and Disabled New Yorkers. We knew then — as we know now — that when Consumers lose control of their services, they risk losing their care and becoming more vulnerable to abuse.

Those warnings were dismissed. But the community was right.

The recent allegations reported by the New York Post (click on the word New York Post!) — of a phishing scheme targeting Personal Assistants in the CDPAP program, alongside an internal data breach that funneled direct deposits to offshore accounts — are a direct result of ignoring the voices of those most affected. These failures are not abstract; they have real and harmful consequences for vulnerable people.

Consumers and Personal Assistants were required to turn over their personal information to PPL — a for-profit company with whom they had no prior relationship — or risk losing their services. No one asked for their consent. No choice was offered. People were forced into vulnerability, exposing their personal data to an unfamiliar corporation simply to continue receiving the care they rely on to survive. This was not done in the best interest of the Consumer. And it did not protect Medicaid from fraud, waste, and abuse. The only interests served were those of the private equity firm driving the transition.

What’s more, the move to PPL has stripped away nearly all local, on-the-ground support that once protected elderly and Disabled individuals. Personalized, peer-based assistance has been replaced by impersonal call centers and automated systems. The relationships that once made the program strong, successful, and safe have been erased. Facilitators are underutilized, with little to no transparency or ability to influence the system. They are reduced to compliance monitors — not advocates.

While the Governor’s office attempts to spin the phishing scheme as a “success story,” crediting consolidation with swift discovery and resolution, the reality is this: without consolidation under PPL, the scheme likely never would have taken root. Centralizing payroll in a single entity made it easier for bad actors to impersonate the company. Conditioning Consumers and Attendants to unquestioningly hand over sensitive information — or risk losing essential services — left them ripe for exploitation. Instead of preventing fraud, waste, and abuse, this transition dismantled the safeguards long provided by smaller, experienced, community-based organizations. The endless maze of call centers, where no one speaks to the same person twice, created the perfect environment for fraud to flourish.

For months, Consumers and Personal Assistants have raised concerns about PPL’s deficient data systems, lack of transparency, and inconsistent communication. Those concerns have been routinely dismissed — by PPL, by the Department of Health, and by the Governor’s office. Removing Disabled people from decision-making in this critical program has led us exactly here: to fraud, to abuse, and to the erosion of trust.

Disabled people losing services, facing institutionalization or death, and caregivers having their paychecks and personal information stolen — these are the real-world consequences of a misguided policy, dismissed as acceptable collateral damage in the name of corporate cost-efficiency.

Independent Living Centers — run by Disabled people — managed CDPAP for over 25 years without these catastrophic failures. By centering the voices of Disabled people, providing personalized support, and maintaining vigilant oversight, we built real protections against the very fraud and abuse now running rampant.

Our elected leaders must act. They must protect elderly and Disabled New Yorkers from further harm and prevent additional Medicaid fraud. The solution is clear: return control of this program to the Disabled people who built it — through the Independent Living Centers that have long proven they can do it right.