Advocating For The New York Health Act

New York has been flirting with a single-payer healthcare system for a long time. In the absence of a Federal plan, it's well past time to complete the engagement.

Greetings, friends,

Last week, we discussed the use of social media given the race at which new “Twitter-Killers” are rising up.  We focused less on specific tools, and more on specific practices.

This week, we’re going to turn to something very similar to our prior discussion of Medicare For All:  A bill long-languishing in the New York State Legislature, the New York Health Act.

This article was suggested by Joe Sackman III.

What Is The New York Health Act?

The New York Health Act (NYHA) is a state-level single-payer program that has been popularized by many Progressive organizations in the state.  I’m choosing to start by highlighting the Campaign For New York Health, a state-wide coalition of organizations seeking to get the NYHA passed, because for the most part their information flows nicely.

According to their FAQ, which I highly suggest you read, this program’s goal would be simple:  All New York Residents and Workers would have their private insurance replaced by state-created policies.

Within the FAQ, they specifically address the number-one concern raised by such a system:  “How do you pay for it?”  They quote an un-dated RAND corporation study that suggests that by centralizing healthcare and eliminating the additional overhead that insurer bureaucracy generates, overall costs will be lower than they presently are.

Their facts sheet goes into more detail, As Conservatives fear, yes, there would be associated tax “increases,” especially for those making over $100,000/year.  The tax is primarily laid upon the employer more than the employee, but nonetheless the tax is there to pay for the public goods in question.

But this doesn’t mean that anyone is paying anything extra.

In fact, simply by removing the incredible healthcare premiums on both the public market (no joke, my NY State Of Health healthcare premiums just went up 20% this year.  Twenty fuckin’ percent.) and the private market, you will save thousands of dollars per year - as will your employer, because they’re no longer paying their insurance overheads.

So What’s The Catch?

Well, as far as one big catch, I don’t see one.  I do, however, see many tiny ones.

First up is that we’re working against what little history there is:  Vermont instituted a universal healthcare system in 2011, only to abandon it in 2014 over outcry from its businesses.  That’s certainly a reminder that even if we are able to carry this bill across the finish line, it can always be undone.

Second up is the issue of reaching that finish line.  This is legislation that’s long been talked about, but has always seemed to have an uphill fight in a state with Democratic(-appearing) supermajorities.  For example, in 2022 it passed the NYS Assembly, yet I can’t seem to find any evidence that the NYS Senate ever so much as voted on it.

Now, why wouldn’t the NYS Senate, controlled by the Democratic party, not vote on it?

Probably because special interests are not exactly silent in Albany.  In this interview with Brian Lehrer of WYNC, Senator Gustavo Rivera advocates for the NYHA but points out that at least one important organization, the United Federation of Teachers (My former union!) was not currently in favor of the NYHA.

This is a common fear with the idea of Medicare For All as well as the NYHA:  That the insurance a certain group has is so good that the state-level one would be a “downgrade.”  This is, on its face, hard to buy into:  It would be both cheaper and it would cover everything.  No more prior authorizations, no more “your plan doesn’t cover this cancer medication that we know will work until you’ve tried and failed on these other ones.”  (Yes, that last one is a personal anecdote from my dad having to try bad medications that worsened his last days DESPITE some of the best insurance).  No more hyper-expensive insulin & diabetes equipment.  No more denials, period.  You need something?

You get it.

And you don’t get a bill for it.

As Senator Rivera pointed out in his interview:  What is the number one thing that unions and employers argue over?  Healthcare.  Employers always want to raise premiums and decline to provide services.  Some employers even refuse to provide women’s health protections such as birth control.  Maybe they should just pay their taxes and let the government sort it out if they’re so against it, hmm?

So How Do We Get There?

This is really a case of having to sit down and call your legislator and/or senator up and demand to know where they stand on it, and why.  You can even catch them at a public event, if they provide one.

Unlike with Medicare For All where there are clear stopping blocks (a Republican-dominated House and a Republican-lite swing-vote in the Senate), the biggest stopping block for the NYHA is probably in Democrats who are really Republicans in disguise.  After all, what other excuse is there that it’s so hard to track down what the Senate did with what the Assembly passed?

So if we can lean enough pressure on all Democrats, maybe we can get this over the finish-line.

Oh, wait, I forgot to mention that our Governor is what I consider a Classical New-York Republican.  Consider who she nominated for the top court job in this state.  Consider how, in recent budget negotiations, she pressed to add 100 charter schools - and got 22.  She gutted the Public Renewables Act.  She refused to tax the ultra-rich and she instead tried to roll back bail law.  She backed off a plan to build 800,000 new homes in NY during a housing affordability crisis.

All of these are Republican moves.

That means that in order to pass the New York Health Act, it may be necessary to have a supermajority that can override a Gubernatorial veto, and we can’t count on Republicans to help us.

My solution to this is simple:  Let Hochul be the one to veto it.  If for some reason the previous Senate held back under threat of veto, let them pass it.  Then, let her have to be the one to once again take the Republican position and deny people healthcare.  Let it be on her.

And then let her face a Primary contender who says point-blank what they will do.  I know Jumaane Williams put up a great fight last time, but that was against a Hochul with little track record as Governor, aside from “At least she’s not Cuomo.”  It was easy to just steady the ship and let her see what she could do.  That’s why I voted for her in the General.

I don’t vote for Republicans, however, so let’s hope she’s not nominated again, especially if she blocks the NYHA.

Guess we’d best add her to the list of people who we make phone calls to, at least.

In Other News

• Keeping on with New York political shenanigans:  Way back in our first article we talked about Gerrymandering and how it cost Democrats the U.S. House in 2022.  Well, New York State has been ordered to redraw its districts once again.  It’s a sign of my cynicism when I say, “Let’s see how they screw this up, this time.”

• The Screen-Actors Guild SAG-AFTRA is in the process of deciding whether or not it will strike, as its contracts have expired.  They would join the Writer’s Guild, WGA, which we’ve talked about previously, on strike at the same time.  All indications are that a strike will happen, and we’ll update you as time goes on.

• According to Ukraine’s Pravda, the International Olympic Committee does not plan to invite Belarus and Russia to the 2024 games.  They cite a long and winding IOC document, so I’ll take them at their word.  This is a net positive because it is yet one more consequence heaped on Putin and his little buddy Lukashenko for their genocidal wars against Ukraine.

• According to CNBC, the Biden administration will be providing free CoVID vaccines to uninsured Americans through 2024.  If you haven’t gotten yours already, please do!  They’re safe, effective, and might save your life or the life of another.

• Republicans continue dismissing reality by opposing climate funding during a time when the planet is as hot as it’s ever been.  It’s infuriating, and probably still deserves its own article at some point in the near future.

• While I’m no proponent of a hyper-militarized nation, I do believe that the Marines need a person to be in charge full-time.  Fascist Senator Tommy Tuberville disagrees, and is blocking about 250 military promotions.  So much for “support the troops,” eh?  This is the same guy with some very pro-White-Nationalist opinions, so maybe it’s no surprise he wants to weaken our military to make it easier for Fascists to pull off a coup.

• After about 48 hours of pressure from author John Green, Johnson and Johnson has opened up anti-Tuberculosis medication to a broader population, a move which will save millions of lives.  I won’t pretend I know that much about this particular struggle, but it sounds like an awesome victory!

• Finally, following on our Pride Month’s conclusion article, a Texas judge is suing to try to be excluded from having to provide marriage licenses to same-sex couples.

Thank you for reading The Progressive Cafe.  If this article has helped you, please consider signing up for our mailing list.  This article is by Jesse Pohlman, a sci-fi/fantasy author from Long Island, New York, whose website you can check out here.