Video, Audio, Photos & Rush Transcript: Governor Hochul Announces $646 Million to Recruit and Train Thousands More Health Care Workers Across New York

Earlier today, Governor Kathy Hochul announced three Workforce Investment Organizations will receive awards totaling up to $646 million over the next three years to implement the Career Pathways Training Program, which will recruit and train thousands of new health, mental health, and social care workers across New York. This program will also provide new career advancement opportunities to many current health care workers throughout the State. The WIO awardees are 1199SEIU Training and Employment Funds, Iroquois Healthcare Association, and the Finger Lakes Performing Provider System. Today's announcement is made possible through the Governor's 1115 New York Health Equity Reform Waiver approved in January.

VIDEO of the event is available on YouTube and in TV quality (h.264, mp4) format.

AUDIO of the Governor's remarks is available.

PHOTOS of the event will be available on the Governor's Flickr page.

A rush transcript of the Governor's remarks is available below:

Whoa, it's early in the morning, crowd. The energy in here, you could hear all the way through the streets of New York City because this is a spectacular day - such an exciting opportunity to transform healthcare in the State of New York. And we got it done. 1199, you were at my side. We went to Washington. We saw an opportunity. To bring in the money that's so essential to give us all the options to keep New Yorkers healthy and to support our amazing workforce. We went to Washington, and we called the President. Every time President Biden came to New York State, he says, "I know, Governor, I know, you want the waiver, the 1115 waiver. I've heard it, I've heard it." I went and visited the Chief of Staff, I met everybody at CMS.

And we have an incredible, incredible delegation representing us in Washington D.C., Jerry Nadler is here to be hearing from him. I want to thank him and all his colleagues for helping deliver this for us. Let's give him a round of applause.

We have my colleagues here in government. We have Senator Brad Hoylman. Thank you, Senator. Senator Gustavo Rivera, our health Chairman. Assemblymember Stefani Zinerman and Jessica González-Rojas from the New York State Assembly. And you'll be hearing from Milly Silva, our Secretary-Treasurer. And also, we are here to honor George Gresham, our fearless leader who worked with me so closely. His context, his advocacy, his relentlessness in pursuing this waiver helped us get here today. Let's give a round of applause for George Gresham.

Not all heroes wear capes. Sometimes they're wearing scrubs, right? They're out there. They're out there in some of the toughest circumstances. I was just visiting a hospital yesterday. And just a chance to give these healthcare workers a hug and say thank you, thank you, thank you. You were on the front lines during the pandemic. You're still on the front lines every single day. You've got some of the toughest jobs on this planet, but you show up every day because you've got heart. You care deeply about people. That's what brought you to this profession. And I want to thank so many of the proud members of SEIU who go out there every single day for us. You help bring new babies into the world. You ease families through hardship, and disease, and illness, and sometimes they're there at the end of life. You see it all, and you are the foundation of our healthcare system that makes sure that we do the very best we can for all New Yorkers.

And I just want to say this, without you, I don't know where we would be. And people should recognize that when they see you on the streets, when they see you in your churches, wherever you worship, when they see you on the job, because your Governor sees you. Your Governor understands you. Your Governor appreciates you. This is the largest healthcare organization, 450,000 strong. We have nurses and pharmacists and social workers and techs, and they know that union card means something, right? It can lift families out of their circumstances. And you have that card - something that my very poor grandparents had, when grandpa worked making steel with his hands. That union card lifted my family out of their circumstances. My dad had that card. They didn't have to live in the trailer park anymore when he became a member of a union. So, I also value, not just the work of this union, but all unions, because New York State is the most unionized state in America, and we're going stronger and stronger every single day.

So, we need to show up for our health care workers, because they show up for us. My first State of the State, I said, "Let's pay them some more, let's give them some more money."

We need to show up for our health care workers, because they show up for us. My first day, I said, "Let's pay them some more, let's give them some more money." Then home health care workers got a wage increase. It was long overdue and we have to do even more. $100 million in annual funding for all kinds of workforce programs, and we just finished allocating $2 billion for over 800,000 workers, just as a way to say thank you - $3,000. And I thank my members of the Legislature for working with me to get that done.

So, I don't want the applause for this. I want to continue focusing the applause on all of you, because I know what you do. I understand what you do. And everybody's feeling a little exhausted, aren't you? It's a lot after a while. And all of you also have your own families and the kids are starting to head back to school, right? Makes you kind of happy. I'm a mom, I know the feeling. But you're also saying, "Okay, the little sneakers don't fit anymore, we've got to get a new backpack, got to get the supplies, the clothes aren't fitting anymore," and it's really expensive for our families. And families are feeling overextended. And I know this hits all of you as well, and I want you to know, we worked hard for our families this year. We really did.

Just this summer, we've announced over $500 million in support for New York families, helping with child care costs. And I want you to get this word out there: a family of four that makes $108,000 or less will no longer have to pay, on average, $350 a week for child care. We have capped it at $15 a week, and that's money right back in their pockets so you can get to your jobs and so you can make sure your kids are taken care of.

Because of the stress of the pandemic, a lot of people left jobs, right? It was a lot. It was too much. Some of them lost their lives, some of them lost loved ones, some of them just said, "I can't do this anymore." Those of you who have stayed have had to pick up the double duty, right? It's extra work, it's extra stress. The challenge is this: we just need more health care workers, full stop. We need more. We need to incentivize them. We need to make it easier. And that's one of the reasons we got here this morning.

I'm announcing $646 million for workforce investment organizations. That's how we get it done. Let's start with the Iroquois Healthcare System, the Finger Lake System and the 1199 Training and Employment Fund System. We'll recruit and train thousands and thousands of new health care workers and social workers through the Career Pathways Training Program, which is extraordinary. The difference that this investment will make is enormous. It will change lives.

And now you're going to be hearing from someone, Idongesit Ekong, a registered nurse at St. John's Episcopal Hospital. She's got a great story. This will inspire you when you understand the impact of - not just these numbers on a piece of paper, they sound great - but what do they really mean for people? The opportunities, what doors are now open that were not open there before that will now happen? The opportunities. And for people who have these opportunities, their kids will also see what hard work looks like. This is a generational decision. When the parents work hard and instill that work ethic in their children like mine did in me, it goes on and on. That's the beauty of what we're doing here today, and I want to thank all of you for being out there with us.

Ekong is going to go become a Psychiatric Nurse Practitioner this fall, she didn't have that door open door before. It'll all be covered. The cost will be covered by this extraordinary program, and there's no stopping her. I know she's going to be this hardworking type of health care worker who should be rewarded.

And I see everybody in this room. You're the ones we're fighting for. You're the ones we're fighting for. And at the end of the day, this waiver - and I want to thank again I cannot thank everybody enough. Let's start with President Joe Biden for making this happen. And I met with not just him, but the Health and Human Services Secretary, Becerra, we served together in Congress. He says, "How are you doing?" I said, "No, I need something from you now. Now that you got the big job." Okay. He helped us get there too, for this waiver. And again, our congressional delegation was extraordinary. This allows us to use federal funds to try new things like pay for social services and other untested, but brand-new ideas to innovate healthcare.

So, we worked hard, we got it done. And I want to say this as Governor, I'll keep fighting for you. Whatever it takes to squeeze every penny out of Washington, I will. And we have a great champion in Jerry Nadler who's on the front lines because you deserve this opportunity, that money is sitting there.

That's over $6 billion that is now unleashed for us to spend in the state of New York to invest in all of you, and all the people you represent. That's why today matters, that's why this waiver is so significant. And I thank all of you who are the champions to march on to Washington, get this delivered. And we got it done, not just for you - but for the people that you serve with such heart every single day.

Congratulations, we got it done!

Now let me introduce your Secretary-Treasurer, Milly Silva!

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