K 612: Memorializing Governor Kathy Hocul to proclaim May 21, 2025, as Telepractice Awareness Day in the State of New York

 Assembly Resolution No. 612 BY: M. of A. Sayegh MEMORIALIZING Governor Kathy Hocul to proclaim May 21, 2025, as Telepractice Awareness Day in the State of New York WHEREAS, It is the sense of this Legislative Body to memorialize Governor Kathy Hocul to proclaim May 21, 2025, as Telepractice Awareness Day in the State of New York; and WHEREAS, Telepractice is the application of telecommunications technology to deliver professional services at a distance by linking clinician to client, or clinician to clinician for assessment, intervention, and/or consultation; and WHEREAS, Less than 27% of speech and language services were being delivered due to COVID-19, leaving many patients without the direction they need to achieve their therapy goals, potentially setting them back months in development; and WHEREAS, Many households in the State New York do not have adequate internet services to support telepractice; and WHEREAS, Telepractice may be used to overcome barriers of access to services caused by distance, unavailability of specialists or subspecialists, and impaired mobility; and WHEREAS, It is the position of the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA) that telepractice is an appropriate model of service delivery for the professions of speech-language pathology and audiology; and WHEREAS, The Lehman College Chapter of the National Student Speech Language and Hearing Association (NSSLHA) in the County of the Bronx supports and advocates for Medicare coverage for audiology and speech-language pathology services delivered via telehealth to be made permanent; and WHEREAS, The Lehman College Speech, Language and Hearing Sciences Department and the Speech and Hearing Center of Lehman College supports the needs of our community in its offering of telehealth services to improve communication disorders including speech, language, feeding, and swallowing disorders; and WHEREAS, This Legislative Body urges all New Yorkers to join in the effort to improve telehealth access to enhance hearing, speech, language, feeding, swallowing, and cognition-related health care services for those in medically underserved areas; now, therefore, be it RESOLVED, That this Legislative Body pause in its deliberations to memorialize Governor Kathy Hocul to proclaim May 21, 2025, as Telepractice Awareness Day in the State of New York; and be it further RESOLVED, That copies of this Resolution, suitably engrossed, be transmitted to The Honorable Kathy Hocul, Governor of the State of New York; The Lehman College Speech, Language and Hearing Sciences Department; and The Speech and Hearing Center of Lehman College.