New York lawmakers are making renewed efforts to create a single-payer healthcare system in the state amid continued opposition from business organizations and insurance companies.
The latest version of a single-payer proposal aims to address concerns that labor unions have raised in the past, the chairmen of the Senate and State House health committees said.
Lawmakers pointed to protections for existing benefits already in place for labor unions, including employer contributions covering costs and a provision to ensure any retired public worker or health benefit, including local government benefits, is included in the program.
Lawmakers also sought to clarify language that all health care providers participating in the program receive full benefits and protections if federally subsidized health programs are used for financial support.
Senate Health Committee Chairman Gustavo Rivera noted that the latest version of the measure, known as the New York Health Code, is a relaunch of efforts to get the measure approved.
“Health care is central to our lives, and yet many cannot access or afford care, so I am committed to making sure that every resident of this state gets the care they need and deserve,” Rivera said.
Rivera, along with the association’s health committee chair, Amy Paulin, enjoys the support of groups such as the New York State Nurses Association and the Interns and Residents Committee.
“There should be no disparity or stigma when it comes to health care,” Bolin said. “We also need a streamlined system. New Yorkers are overburdened by rising premiums, changing deductibles, co-pays, restricted provider networks, out-of-network fees, coverage gaps, and denials of coverage. New York health law takes all of this out of the equation, channeling our time and energy And our money into our health care. We can’t continue with the status quo. We need to change the system if we want people to live — and live well.”
The measure is still expected to face opponents from the business community and healthcare sectors, including insurance companies. In the past, these groups have indicated the cost of the health care program to be paid by the individual along with the potential jobs that might be lost in the insurance sector as a result.
“This bill would create one of the most extreme government-run health care systems in the world,” the New York State Business Council earlier wrote in a dissenting note. “This bill would limit health care options for New Yorkers, reduce the quality of health care in the state, increase the tax burden on every working New Yorker in staggering, almost unimaginable ways and make New York an attractive place to rent to do business on the continent.”
Lawmakers who supported the proposal argued that the current system is already too expensive for New Yorkers, and it could eventually save money in the long run.
Medicare coverage in New York has expanded over the past several years, though immigrants without legal status remain among those without guaranteed coverage. A measure to provide subsidized health care to these residents stalled at the end of the legislative session last month.
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