Assembly Resolution No. 636

BY: M. of A. Sayegh

MEMORIALIZING Governor Kathy Hochul to proclaim
May 21, 2023, as Telepractice Awareness Day in the
State of New York

WHEREAS, It is the sense of this Legislative Body to memorialize
Governor Kathy Hochul to proclaim May 21, 2023, 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 are 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 Hochul to proclaim May 21, 2023, 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 Hochul, 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.