Overview
During the United Hospital Fund’s 2026 Medicaid Conference, held on July 30, 2026, New York State Medicaid Director Amir Bassiri announced an immediate six-month moratorium on new Medicaid provider enrollments for six “higher-risk” provider categories:
- laboratories;
- durable medical equipment (DME) suppliers;
- applied behavioral analysts (ABA);
- licensed home care service agencies (LHCSAs);
- pharmacies; and
- managed long-term care (MLTC) plans (including MLTC Partial Capitation, Medicaid Advantage Plus, and PACE organizations).
The moratorium is intended to give the state time to modernize its provider revalidation process through the new Provider Services Portal (PSP). In April 2026, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) directed all states to implement comprehensive provider revalidation strategies requiring every Medicaid-enrolled provider to be revalidated within the next 24 months. New York received CMS approval to implement its plan, which includes temporary enrollment moratoria for these higher-risk categories. During the moratorium period, all pending applications, regardless of stage of review, will be discontinued immediately, and no new applications will be processed or advanced. Existing enrolled providers in these classes are not affected and should continue to revalidate when notified.
The state’s action follows CMS’s May 2026 nationwide Medicare enrollment moratoria for home health agencies and hospices, as well as the February 2026 moratorium on certain durable medical equipment, prosthetics, orthotics, and supplies (DMEPOS) medical supply companies. CMS has encouraged states to implement similar temporary enrollment moratoria for higher-risk provider classes as part of its broader efforts to prevent fraud, waste, and abuse.
NYS DOH’s Position on Ownership Changes
During a recent Medicaid provider revalidation webinar, New York State Department of Health (DOH) confirmed that changes in ownership (CHOWs) for the six affected provider categories will not be processed during the moratorium. DOH explained that it is “not touching provider information” during this period. Providers may update certain technical data, but ownership structure changes will not be processed.
In an August 11, 2026 update, LeadingAge NY likewise reported that the six-month moratorium will prohibit both Medicaid enrollment and changes of ownership for providers in the affected categories. DOH has indicated it expects to publish FAQs in the coming days, but public guidance to date has not resolved all CHOW and transaction-structuring questions.
Notably, while CMS has issued guidance clarifying that its Medicare enrollment moratoria do not bar CHOW transactions where the enrolled provider entity remains the same, Director Bassiri did not initially indicate how New York would treat such transactions. DOH’s subsequent webinar statements now confirm that CHOW processing is halted for affected categories during the moratorium period.
LeadingAge NY has also reported that MLTC plans will implement the moratorium for Social Adult Day Care (SADC) providers, with further operational guidance expected. This development is particularly relevant for MLTC, MAP, PACE, LHCSA, and SADC transactions or arrangements that require Medicaid enrollment action or provider-information updates.
Transaction Implications
The moratorium raises significant questions for pending and future Mergers and Acquisitions (M&A) transactions involving affected provider types. The impact will vary depending on transaction structure:
Stock Acquisitions
In a stock acquisition, the enrolled provider entity remains unchanged; New York generally requires only notification of new ownership. This may not constitute a “new” enrollment application subject to the moratorium. However, parties should not treat stock deals as categorically outside the moratorium if the transaction requires Medicaid ownership-change processing, a provider-information update, or any other DOH action during the moratorium period.
Asset Acquisitions by Enrolled Buyers
Where the buyer is already a licensed, Medicaid-enrolled provider in the same category, an asset acquisition should not trigger a new enrollment application. These transactions are less likely to be directly impacted, though uncertainty remains regarding how DOH will handle required updates to existing enrollment records.
Asset Acquisitions by Non-Enrolled Buyers
Asset transactions are most directly affected where the acquiring entity lacks an existing Medicaid enrollment in the relevant provider category. Such buyers would need to submit a new enrollment application, which will not be processed during the moratorium. These deals may face closing delays of six months or longer.
LHCSA Schedule 1 Processes
It remains uncertain whether DOH will also halt LHCSA Schedule 1 processes and other CHOW-related administrative proceedings during the moratorium. Stakeholders involved in LHCSA transactions should seek clarification from DOH as additional guidance becomes available.
Licensure vs. Enrollment
The Medicaid enrollment moratorium applies to Medicaid provider enrollment and related ownership changes, but questions remain about how it intersects with separate state licensure processes for affected provider types. For example, it is not yet clear whether DOH will halt LHCSA Certificate of Need (CON) applications or other licensure-related filings that do not directly involve Medicaid enrollment. DOH is expected to provide additional guidance on these and related questions.
New York’s History of Extended Moratoria
While the moratorium is characterized as temporary, stakeholders should be aware of New York’s track record of extending both formal and informal enrollment pauses. Most notably, the state imposed a moratorium on new LHCSA licenses beginning in 2018 that did not effectively end until 2022—a four-year pause initially described as temporary. Similarly, New York has maintained an effective moratorium on new hospice provider enrollments for more than 15 years. Stakeholders should plan for the possibility that this six-month moratorium may be extended.
Practical Takeaways
Stakeholders currently negotiating or planning transactions involving any of the six affected provider categories should carefully evaluate transaction timing, deal structure, and closing conditions in light of the moratorium. Pending or planned LTC transactions should assume possible interruption where a deal requires Medicaid enrollment action, CHOW processing, or updates to ownership information for an affected provider category. Key considerations include whether an alternative transaction structure (e.g., stock deal rather than asset deal) could avoid the need for a new enrollment application; whether closing conditions should be revised to account for potential processing delays; and whether extended outside dates or moratorium-specific termination rights are appropriate. We are monitoring DOH’s forthcoming FAQs and any additional guidance for potential relief or clarifications regarding CHOW processing and will be providing updates as they become available.
Should you have any questions regarding the moratorium or its impact on pending or planned transactions, please contact the author, the Garfunkel Wild attorney with whom you regularly work, or contact us at [email protected].