Magee: New York Health Act provides health coverage for all New Yorkers
Assemblyman Bill Magee (D-Nelson) announced that a measure he co-sponsored, the New York Health Act, passed the Assembly (A.4738-A). This landmark legislation establishes a single-payer health insurance plan that would ensure all New Yorkers have affordable health care coverage.
“The current health care system is becoming increasingly unsustainable and costly for families and businesses,” said Magee. “By creating a system where everyone is covered, people won’t have to worry about being turned down because of a pre-existing condition or being forced into bankruptcy to pay for critical medical care. It’ll also shed small businesses of the burden of providing health insurance to their employees, freeing them up to grow and create jobs.”
The New York Health Act would establish a universal health care system within the state, known as New York Health, and expand coverage eligibility to include all residents, regardless of wealth, income, age or pre-existing condition. In addition, every enrollee would have access to the full range of doctors and service providers offered. The plan would provide comprehensive inpatient and outpatient care, primary and preventive care, maternity care, prescription drug costs, laboratory testing, rehabilitative care and dental, vision and hearing care.
Care providers and coordinators would be fully paid by New York Health, with no copays, deductibles or other charges to patients. The system would be publicly funded based on a shared 80/20 employer/employee payroll contribution that would be progressive and based on the amount the employee is paid. This eliminates the regressive tax of premiums, co-pays and deductibles that is currently imposed on patients.
Employers would no longer be responsible for paying premiums and they would also no longer have to sign contracts with insurance companies and deal with the administration of health plans. Further, small businesses wouldn’t be forced to compete with the health plans offered by their large corporate competitors. For local businesses and farms, cutting red tape around health insurance and keeping costs down would be a major boost, Magee said.
Additionally, creating this universal system would end the local share of Medicaid funding, significantly easing New Yorkers’ property tax burden, Magee said.