What is NY Connects?

NY Connects is a program that provides free, objective, and comprehensive information and assistance to individuals in need of long-term services and supports.

What are Long-term Services and Supports?

Long-term services and supports, or LTSS, are both medical and non-medical services that help individuals address the functional deficits that would otherwise affect their ability to live safely and independently at home.

Who does NY Connects serve?

NY Connects serves anyone with reduced function—whether due to age, physical disability, intellectual or developmental disability, mental illness, or substance use disorder–to support their independent living. In addition to serving older adults and individuals with disabilities at any age, NY Connects also serves their families, caregivers, and other helping professionals.

You can contact NY Connects, if you are:

• An older adult
• A child or an adult with a disability
• A family member
• A friend or neighbor
• A caretaker
• A helping professional

What kinds of services could NY Connects help me to find?

• Nutrition and food support programs, like home-delivered meals
• Transportation
• Respite care
• Home health care
• Counseling and support
• Residential housing options and supports
• Caregiver supports
• Children-specific supports (e.g. Early Intervention)
• Nursing homes
• Care coordination
• Insurance information (e.g. Medicare and Medicaid)
• Abuse prevention
• Support groups
• Financial and legal services
• Mental health and addiction services

How do I get help from NY Connects?

In Columbia County:

Contact Rachel Cole, NY Connects Information and Assistance Specialist

• by phone at 518-828-CARE (2273) or toll-free outside Hudson: 1-877-260-9244
• via email to rcole@columbiahealthnet.org
• in person at the Healthcare Consortium, 325 Columbia Street, Suite 200, Hudson, NY

In Greene County:

Contact Ashling Kelly, NY Connects Information and Assistance Specialist

• by phone at 518-719-3556
• via email to akelly@greenecountyny.gov
• in person at the Greene County Department of Human Services, 411 Main Street, Catskill, NY