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PUBLIC TESTIMONY
Testimony by Carmen Garcia, Community Health Worker Supervisor at Make the Road New York
6:17:48
·
143 sec
Carmen Garcia from Make the Road New York urges the city council to continue and enhance funding for various health initiatives that support health education and navigation for vulnerable New Yorkers, particularly immigrants and working-class communities. She emphasizes the critical nature of these services in the face of budget cuts and anti-immigrant sentiments.
- Requests expansion of funding for Access Health Initiative to $4.5 million and $2.36 million for MCCAP initiative
- Advocates for maintaining FY25 funding levels for Ending the Epidemic ($9.5 million) and Immigrant Health Initiative ($2.4 million)
- Seeks additional funding for food pantries, wraparound services, and LGBTQ+ justice projects
Carmen Garcia
6:17:48
Good afternoon council members.
6:17:50
My name is Carmen Garcia.
6:17:52
I'm a community health worker supervisor at Make the Road New York.
6:17:55
I'm here today to urge the council to enhance and continue city council funding for various health initiatives that support health education and health navigation for vulnerable New Yorkers.
6:18:08
Make the world firmly believes in safeguarding dignity and fairness across our society regardless of socioeconomics and immigration status.
6:18:19
In the face of anti immigrant attacks, budget cuts, and other assaults on working people, Make the Road and other CBOs are working round the clock to meet the increasing needs.
6:18:29
And this work couldn't happen without these initiatives.
6:18:33
Failure to fund critical health initiatives would harm our community's health in a moment when immigrant New Yorkers are most vulnerable.
6:18:42
We request the council to support on the following fiscal year '26 initiatives and for Make the Road.
6:18:50
Expand overall funding for the Access Health Initiative to 4,500,000.0 and allocate 2,360,000.00 in funding for the MCCAP initiative.
6:19:02
This includes an increase from 29,594 to 72,218 so Make the Road can receive designation similar to other CBOs participating in the program.
6:19:16
Maintain fiscal year twenty five levels of funding for the ending of the epidemic at 9,500,000.0 and immigrant health initiative at over 2,400,000.0.
6:19:26
This includes 75,000 for make the road for ending the epidemic and 70,000 75,000 for make the road from the immigrant health initiative.
6:19:36
Securing 50,000 from the food pantries initiative for make the road New York to provide emergency food support for low income families.
6:19:45
Securing three three hundred thousand under the speakers initiative for wraparound legal health and educational services plus 75,000 under the speakers initiative for our TG and CIQ justice projects for vital outreach to this extremely vulnerable community.
6:20:05
Thank you for standing up for these vital services that immigrants and working class New Yorkers depend on.