BROOKLYN COMMUNITY BOARD 6
YOUTH/HUMAN SERVICES/EDUCATION COMMITTEE
May 25, 2016
ATTENDANCE
P. Bellenbaum P K. Gurl P B. Solotaire P F. Brown A L. Hill E S. Turet P J. Brown A T. Jackson P R. Underwood E E. Causil-Rodriguez A F. Jean A Sr. R. Cervone E J. Li E E. Felder E C. Robello A R. Freeman P A. Shefrin P
P = present, E = excused, A = absent
GUESTS
C. Burke J. McTiernan J. Santore
***MINUTES***
Presentation and discussion with representatives for Independence Care System
(ICS), a community-based, nonprofit agency dedicated to supporting senior adults and adults with physical disabilities and chronic conditions to live at home and participate fully in community life.
Mark Rybakov, Community Engagement Specialist with Independence Care System (ICS) led the presentation, guiding attendees through a slideshow that gave a comprehensive overview of the services ICS provides to its clients.
ICS is headquartered in Manhattan and services all NYC boroughs except Staten Island. They are doing outreach through community boards, senior centers and churches throughout the boroughs.
ICS is a managed long-term care (MLTC) program with an overall mission of supporting older adults and those with disabilities the ability to continue living at home. They are contracted by NY State and most of their services are paid for through clients’ Medicaid.
The committee asked for more information about how they assist clients who may not be eligible for Medicaid—there seemed to be a lack of clarity around that process.
ICS is looking to CB6 to connect them to potential new pools of clients. While one member of the YHSE committee applauded ICS’s advocacy work on behalf of New Yorkers with disabilities (which was not the focus of this presentation) many on the committee had reservations about what was essentially a marketing pitch.
Discussion moved to next agenda item:
Presentation and discussion with representatives for Breaking Ground, the City’s contracted homeless services organization that provides mobile outreach teams and individual assistance for people who need to access shelter and related support services.
Presentation led by ____________________ and __________________.
Breaking Ground is tasked with responding within one hour to any 311 calls regarding an apparent homeless person. They recently were able to double their staff and increase their response time because of an increase in funding. They receive an average of about 100 calls per day, approx. 70% of those either don’t need services or refuse services.
They discussed ways in which the needs differ from borough to borough and how that’s shifted over time as Manhattan and parts of Brooklyn have become more affluent. An ongoing challenge is the lack of services available to undocumented people. Services for families in shelters are still lacking as well.
Breaking Ground is able to provide transitional housing, drop-in centers, medical care, and case management. Many of their clients have been in and out of the shelter system for many years. They have been doing their own counts (in all seasons) in an effort to gather more comprehensive information about the number of homeless people in NYC.
Overall they feel the number has been reduced in recent years, and they’ve had some positive meetings with high level city officials, so are feeling supported in their efforts.
Other business: Committee did not have a quorum, so minutes from the April 27, 2016 meeting could not be approved.
Meeting was adjourned.