Despite controversy surrounding a national pilot to coordinate coverage and care for people dually enrolled in Medicaid and Medicare, New York announced Monday it would join six other states in the demonstration headed by the CMS.

The program, called the Financial Alignment Initiative and authorized by the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, has seen more than half of the 26 states that originally signed up either drop out or delay their start dates.

New York’s demonstration, known as Fully Integrated Duals Advantage, is slated to begin after July 1, 2014, and run through the end of 2017. The program is intended to integrate and coordinate services in order to better address the long-term care and social needs for the 170,000 residents identified as dual-eligibles. Read the full article here.