NYS Medicaid Redesign Team II (MRT) 2020 changes - Status of 30-month Lookback and the 3-ADL Minimum Standards for Home Care

This article gives updates on the Medicaid changes enacted in the 2020 NYS Budget under the "Medicaid Redesign Team II" or MRT-2. Though enached in 2020, one of these cuts - the Minimum ADL Thresholds for home care - was just implemented in Sept. 2025, and the 30-Month Lookback is still not implemented as of Jan. 2026. They were on hold for all those years because of "maintenance of effort" protections in federal COVID laws that prohibited cuts in Medicaid. Those restrictions were lifted in early 2025.

The 2020 MRT-2 changes are the:

Three-ADL Minimum Threshold to qualify for Personal Care and CDPAP and enroll in MLTC - started Sept. 1, 2025 -
- Read this new in-depth article about the ADL Thresholds (posted Jan. 2026)
- View recording here of NYLAG webinar on these changes presented on Aug. 26, 2025 and download Powerpoint presentation here.
30-month Lookback - which is still not implemented as of Feb. 2, 2026. See more here.
The New York Independent Assessor Program (NYIAP) is already in effect see this article.
Diminishing Transition Rights for People Required to Change or Enroll in an MLTC plan - See this article and FACT SHEET about the amended regulation effective Nov. 8, 2021.
Other Changes in Medicaid Home Care Enacted in 2020

1. MInimum Needs 3-ADL Criteria - RAISING THE BAR OF WHO GETS PERSONAL CARE OR CDPAP or who can Enroll in MLTC Plan - STARTED Sept. 1, 2025

This change in eligibility was enacted in 2020 but has been on hold until September 2025 because of Maintenance of Effort Requirements under the federal ARPA COVID relief law- see more about those requirements here.

View recording here of NYLAG webinar presented on Aug. 26, 2025 and download Powerpoint presentation here.

See this new article about the new Minimum ADL Thresholds. (which includes nuts and bolts about the ADl thresholds that were previously posted in this news article).

Maintenance of Effort Requirent under ARPA - Delayed Implementation of 30-month Lookback and ADL Restrictions

Neither the 30-month lookback or the 3-ADL eligibility restriction could start until CMS certified that the state has spent federal funds under the American Rescue Plan (ARPA). The ARPA law had a Maintenance of Effort Requirement that says states cannot restrict eligibility for home and community based services (HCBS) until the earlier of when they spend the federal ARPA funds or March 31, 2025. See this link. See NYS ARPA website for its spending plan and quarterly reports to CMS.

CMS issued a "close out" letter (PDF) in January 2025 finding that the ARPA funds have been spent. This allows the ADL Restrictions to be implemented. However, there are other steps needed before the 30-month Lookback may be implemented. See below.

2. 30-Month Lookback and Transfer Penalty for Community Based Home Care - No start date set as of Jan. 2026

LOOKBACK - DOH has informally stated that the earliest date for implementation was in 2025 - though the date on NYS MRT 2 webpage is still March 31, 2024. Given the approvals still outstanding from CMS, and the lack of any DOH procedures instructing the local Medicaid offices about the lookback, it seems unlikely it can start until at least later in 2026 or 2027.

NYLAG supports a bill A1907 - S04786 that would REPEAL the 30-month lookback. Download memo in support here (2025-26)

The lookback cannot begin until the following happen, which have not happened as of Jan. 29, 2026

CMS must approve a State Plan Amendment of the Medicaid plan
CMS must approve DOH's request to amend the 1115 waiver to allow a lookback to be used to limit eligibility for MLTC enrollment.
- In Sept. 2020, NYLAG posted COMMENTS to the State's preliminary proposal to amend the 1115 waiver to apply the LOOKBACK to MLTC enrollment.
- In March 2021, DOH filed a request with CMS to impose a 30-month lookback, after considering the comments received to the first round.
- On May 5, 2021, NYLAG submitted comments on the State's March 2021 proposal to CMS to amend the 1115 waiver to allow the lookback to apply to MLTC enrollment (PDF).
- CMS "Completeness letter" dated April 7, 2021 - (Web) - (PDF).
- In Sept. 2022, DOH amended its request to CMS to amend the 1115 waiver to impose the lookback.
- Track updates on this request on the CMS 1115 Waiver update page.
DOH must develop and issue directives to the local Medicaid agencies with policies, procedures and forms to implement the lookback. These have not been issued as of Jan. 29, 2026.

Once the lookback goes into effect, applications filed for Medicaid in order to obtain any community-based long term care service will have a “lookback” of 30 months (2.5 years). Applications filed before the effective date -- whatever it is -- will have no lookback. So for those applications, transfers of assets after Oct. 1, 2020 will not trigger any transfer penalty. Check back to this website for news to see if this extension is confirmed.

HOW LONG IS THE LOOKBACK? The lookback will require records back 30 months before the application. When it was first enacted in 2020, the lookback would have been phased in, starting with shorter periods and then eventually being 30 months. It is unclear if it will be phased in when finally implemented, or if it will be 30 months from the beginning.

Both Applicant and spouse must submit all financial records during the lookback period, even if the spouse is not applying for Medicaid or is doing a spousal refusal.

Transfers made during the lookback period could trigger a transfer penalty unless they are exempt transfers. The length of the penalty will be calculated the same as it is for nursing homes. In NYC home care would be denied for one month for every $15,282 transferred (2026 - see GIS 25 MA/14). See penalty rate in the rest of the state in the same GIS. See the PowerPoint for more information

Which services does the lookback apply to? The law specifies home health care services, private duty nursing services, personal care services (which likely include CDPAP), and assisted living program services. DOH may designate others by regulation. Since MLTC plans deliver these services, presumably the lookback will apply to MLTC enrollment.
- DOH said it did not intend to impose a lookback for the OPWDD, TBI, or NHTDW waivers.
The usual exceptions would apply–transfers to the spouse, transfers by an individual under 65 to a supplemental needs trust, transfer to a disabled child. See exceptions to the transfer penalty for a nursing home here. Since the home is exempt while an individual is living in it, subject to the home equity limit, it is our hope that a penalty may not be imposed on the transfer of a home - but DOH's March 2021 proposal to CMS says transfers of the home would be subject to the same penalties with the same exceptions that apply for nursing home care. Advocates disagree. Many policies like this will be fleshed out later.
The lookback will inevitably cause long delays in processing applications, not to mention compiling the documents needed to apply. It is our view that the Medicaid agencies must comply with the time limits for approvals – generally 45 days, and 90 days if a disability determination is required, and faster for Immediate Need cases. Yet even now, applications often exceed these limits, and this will add more work for the local districts. There are many questions about implementation – this is just the bare bones as we understand it now.
- NYLAG and the NYSBA have asked for ATTESTATION to be permitted for IMMEDIATE NEED CASES. In the March 2021 submission to CMS, DOH says it will not permit attestation that no transfers wwere made in the lookback period
TIP: Medicaid applications filed now should request coverage of CB-LTC, in order for the consumer to be "grandfathered in" with no lookback required later, after the lookback goes into effect. In order to request coverage of CB-LTC, be sure to include Supplement A DOH 5178A with the application (which must now be included with all Medicaid applications anyway - see this article). Links to the statewide Supplement A Form DOH-5178A are in this article, which explains that NYC no longer uses a different form).
TIP: On the Supplement A DOH 5178A form (link here), Question 8 on page 3 asks you to check one of THREE boxes to indicate the type of care and services applicant is seeking. The 1st two choices are both for Community-Based coverage. Choose the SECOND box seeking community Medicaid with Community-Based Long Term Care, to improve chances that the application will be grandfathered in. NOTE that final policies on exactly which individuals have been grandfathered in have not been issued, but DOH's final submission to CMS requesting amendment of the 1115 waiver governing the MLTC program says that those "who apply for Medicaid coverage of CBLTC before the implementation date will not be subject to the 30-month lookback, including those individuals who file a pre-implementation date application for Medicaid coverage of CBLTC but who are not yet receiving CBLTC services under that application on the implementation date." Final version submitted to CMS March 25, 2021 (Web) - (PDF at page 6).

5. Other Changes in Medicaid and Home Care Enacted in 2020

DOH is scaling back usage of MLTC plans that are “partially capitated”–meaning that Medicare services are not included. They will be expanding “fully capitated” plans – which are Medicaid Advantage Plus and PACE. There will be expanding “fully capitated” plans – which are Medicaid Advantage Plus and PACE. The FIDA program was fully capitated but it closed last year. (sec 5) Read about types of plans here.
DOH is setting a cap on enrollment by individual MLTC plans, in an effort to limit the rapid growth in certain plans, which may result from aggressive marketing by the plan and its contractors. The penalty for exceeding the cap will be withholding of up to 3 percent of the premium.

SIDE NOTE – NYLAG fears that plans will control their enrollment by excluding the high-need consumers while welcoming those with lower needs(sec. 5).

Instead of a nurse assessment twice a year, MLTCs will now assess once a year unless there is a need for an additional assessment. (sec. 22). The assessments are by NY Medicaid Choice.
Transportation will be carved out of MLTC service package–DOH will contract with a transportation broker. (Part LL, sec. 2)
Mandatory Auto-Enrollment of dual eligibles enrolled in Medicare Dual Eligible Special Needs Plan (Dual-SNP) into Medicaid Advantage plans when they turn 65, or into Medicaid Advantage Plus (MAP) plans if they receive home care. This is part of the push to the “full capitation” mega-plans that cover both Medicaid and Medicare. Initially, this will primarily affect people who had MAGI Medicaid under age 65, then are transitioned to non-MAGI Medicaid at 65. Most were in mainstream Medicaid managed care plans, so they will be transferred to the “sister” Medicaid Advantage Plan of the same company. (Sec. 6) (Medicaid Advantage is like Medicaid Advantage Plus except these plans do not provide any Medicaid long-term care services. Only MAP plans provide Medicaid long-term care services).
- On Dec. 24, 2020, NYLAG submitted comments on the State's request to CMS to amend the 1115 waiver to allow for this default enrollment.
- See this article for information about how Default Enrollment has been implemented starting in April 2021.
New applicants for Medicaid seeking home care will no longer be informed of the availability of CDPAP. (sec 17).
Various limits on CDPAP access, such as new people approved for Medicaid will no longer be informed of the availability of CDPAP services.
2020 Budget required DOH to procure a new standardized task-based assessment tool, about which advocates have raised concerns. This was never implemented and Gov. Hochul's proposed Budget for 2022-23 abandoned this effort and instead just issued guidelines and standards for plans and local districts to make appropriate and indivdiualized determinations for utilization. A uniform "tasking tool" that would presumably translate findings made in the Uniform Assessment System nurse assessment (a/k/a Community Health Assessment) into a plan of care with the number of hours to be approved. The law says the tool must be “ evidence-based” and used “to assist managed care plans and local departments of social services to make appropriate and individualized determinations for ... the number of personal care services and CDPAP hours of care each day.“ The tool is supposed to identify how Medicaid recipients' needs for assistance with activities of daily living can be met through telehealth and family and social supports. (Section 21). In early May 2021, DOH posted a Request for Information for the new Uniform Tasking Tool.

Click here to download NYLAG's position paper that opposed the cuts and

Read about real people who would be hurt by each of these cuts.

Click here to download the executive summary of the Medicaid Redesign Team (MRT) II proposals.

See also Medicaid Matters NY coalition statements on the NYS Budget and MRT II.