The New Health Care Reform ActNEW YORK CITYVOICES: January/February 2000
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By Richard N. Gottfried, Chair, NYS Assembly Health Committee
You saw the TV ads: "Not hiccup-HCRA." In 1999, much of my work as chair of the Assembly Health Committee was devoted to shaping the Assembly's extensive HCRA plan and fighting to get it enacted. We won an extraordinary victory for all New Yorkers when the final packages were negotiated and passed in December. HCRA 2000:
New health coverage: Family Health Plus will provide health coverage (including mental health services) to families with children up to 150% of poverty (e.g., a family of four with income of $25,000 or less), and childless families up to 100% of poverty (e.g., a family of two with income of $11,060 or less). HCRA 2000 will also stabilize premiums for individuals who pay for their own coverage in the direct pay market, helping many people with chronic health conditions.
- Includes $266 million in funding (over 3½ years) for community mental health services
- Includes the new Family Health Plus Plan that provides health coverage (including coverage for mental health services) to low-income, uninsured adults
- Has major increased funding for hospitals, nursing home and other health-care providers around N.Y. that serve large numbers of poor and uninsured patients and trained physicians
- Commits the state's tobacco settlement money, plus an increase in the tobacco tax to healthcare and an unexpected anti-smoking campaign
- Commits the Governor and Legislature to block any new cuts in Medicaid for three years
- Mental health services. HCRA 2000 includes funding to pay for expanded services for New Yorkers with mental illnesses, including treatment, residential and case management services for children and adults. Legislation establishing the program must be enacted during the year 2000 Legislative Session.
Hospitals and clinics: HCRA 2000 increases payments to hospitals and clinics with large numbers of uninsured patients. This is critical to the financial viability of many of our hospitals and clinics.
Anti-Smoking. HCRA earmarks funding for comprehensive anti-tobacco campaign under guidelines developed by the Centers for Disease Control. The plan will also increase the tax on a pack of cigarettes by 55 cents per pack and use the money to help support health programs.
Lab tax eliminated. The plan eliminates the 8.18% surcharge on clinical laboratory service to relieve a $54 million financial burden on patients.Medicaid protected: Medicaid cuts over the last five years have hurt our hospitals, nursing homes, home-care agencies and clinics. These cuts undermine care for all of us, whether on Medicaid or not. HCRA 2000 guarantees that there will be no new Medicaid cuts for at least the next three years.
School health clinics: HCRA 2000 provides $24 million over three and a half years for school-based health clinics that play an important role in our children's health care.
Unfortunately, the Governor refused to include coverage for mental health services in the new small business insurance program. The program will subsidize insurance premiums for many small businesses that do not already provide health coverage for their employees.
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