October 12, 2007
HEALTHY CONVERSATION
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Hannay jots down health care priorities |
Health care as a public good. Decline in employer-based coverage. Inclusion of support services. Public health coverage simplification.
When a room of 60-some advocates met Wednesday to prepare a list of talking points for the New York State public hearing on health care reform on October 30 at Fordham University, 60-some suggestions were put forward. While groups like the Children's Defense Fund of New York, Housing Works, the New York Immigration Coalition and the American Cancer Society all had different priorities, the crowd cheered when Mark Hannay reminded everyone of their shared vision. "The number one thing on this list is that health care reform has to happen!" said Hannay, director of Metro New York Health Care For All campaign and one of the event's moderators.
One of Gov. Eliot Spitzer's campaign promises was that there would be real health care reform in New York State. The New York State Department of Health (NYSDOH) has started holding public hearings throughout the state to gather input as it develops proposals for health care reform, increased access to health insurance and universal health care. (For more information go to partnership4coverage.ny.gov).
"This may be one of those moments where the stars are aligned and we may be able to move forward with the process of health care reform for the state of New York," said David Jones, the CEO and President of the Community Service Society.
The advocates who gathered Wednesday want to make sure consumers and health care advocates testify in large numbers at the October 30 hearing. At Buffalo's hearing on October 3 only about 50 people attended and the loudest voices belonged to insurance companies, who claimed "'under-insured' is not a term we recognize in our field," according to Arianne Garza, a policy analyst at Community Service Society who attended the Buffalo forum. The September 4 forum in Glens Falls was better attended and had more consumer and provider input.
Those who want to attend the October 30 hearing or testify in person or via written statement must pre-register with the NYSDOH, and must provide six written copies of their testimony to partnership4coverage@health.state.ny.us. For full information on submitting testimony click here.
To participate in a possible press conference during the all-day public hearing, contact Elisabeth Benjamin at ebenjamin@cssny.org.