Federal investigators are scrutinizing New York Governor Kathy Hochul’s overhaul of the state’s consumer-directed personal assistance program (CDPAP), according to reports.

In recent months, investigators from the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) have been actively examining the New York State Department of Health’s choice for a single fiscal intermediary, Public Partnerships LLC (PPL), according to The New York Post. Investigators have  “an eye toward potential criminal or civil actions at the conclusion of the investigation,” according to the Post, which cited an anonymous source in direct contact with investigators.   

The DOJ did not respond to Home Health Care News’ request for comment by the time of publication.

The Post’s source stated that the DOJ probe could implicate the reasons for the governor’s push to overhaul the state’s CDPAP program, including claims that the $1.05 billion contract decision was rigged.

CDPAP transitioned from approximately 700 fiscal intermediaries to a single one as part of reforms tied to Hochul’s 2025 budget. PPL was awarded the fiscal intermediary contract in October, with an agreement requiring PPL to collaborate with four local organizations and a network of 30 home care agencies. 

“New York’s much-needed CDPAP reforms are protecting services for people who need them and stopping the runaway bureaucratic spending that put CDPAP on the verge of a fiscal crisis,” a spokesperson for Gov. Hochul told Home Health Care News in an email. “Removing more than 600 administrative middlemen is a commonsense approach to cutting waste, fraud and abuse – including the recent $68 million fraud scheme alleged by federal prosecutors. The CDPAP transition is proceeding effectively and the Department of Health will continue working with all stakeholders to ensure that consumers and workers receive the care and support they need.” 

Hochul’s administration required nearly 280,000 consumers receiving care under CDPAP to reregister from their current payroll services firm to PPL. The registration deadline has repeatedly fluctuated, as the original deadline of April 1 was changed to April 30, with a subsequent delay extending it to June 20. 

The transition to a single fiscal intermediary sparked a wave of lawsuits and protests, alleging that PPL failed to pay caregivers sufficiently or on time. 

“We continue to work diligently to support consumers and personal assistants (PAs) who wish to continue in the New York CDPAP program with PPL,” a PPL spokesperson told HHCN in an email. “We are pleased to see more and more PAs submitting their time entries for on-time payment each week and are committed to making the process as easy as possible.”

More than $880 million in payments have been issued to 210,000 individual PAs, according to PPL.