The New York State Legislature’s annual budget process is well underway and will conclude by the end of this month. It’s one of the key periods that issue advocates like us leverage to advance our legislative goals.

What We’ve Been Working On:

We participate in two statewide health advocacy coalitions that focus on budget issues:  Medicaid Matters New York, and Health Care for All New York. Each has a comprehensive budget agenda on their websites. In addition, we are helping to lead two budget-focused campaigns: Coverage for All, and End Medical Debt.

Coverage for All is pushing to expand New York’s very successful Essential Plan to all low-income New Yorkers, regardless of their immigration status. End Medical Debt is pushing to improve and expand hospital financial assistance programs, and prevent patients with medical debt from being reported to credit check agencies.

The health committee chairs in each chamber (Sen. Gustavo Rivera, and Assemblymember Amy Paulin) are the lead sponsors of these bills, and they are being supported by many legislators. Governor Hochul has proposed more modest and limited versions of them, so there is common ground to build upon, and we are hopeful for success if the Legislature holds strong for robust versions of them.

What Suddenly Needs Special Attention and Support RIGHT NOW:

Something that we’ve long-supported and thought had been accomplished legislatively three years ago is now at risk, and we need everyone to step forward NOW to keep it on track. It’s not a health care program per se, but rather it involves something that rebalances power overall in state government, and will enable us to significantly advance toward universal health care (along with other progressive ideas.)

In 2020, after a years-long effort led by the Fair Elections for New York coalition (that we are part of), New York created a landmark new system of public financing of election campaigns to better enable grassroots community leaders to run for public office. It is modeled on a very successful small donor matching system that we’ve had here in NYC for over two decades that has transformed our government for the better. The new statewide system began to launch last fall right after Election Day, to be in effect for next year’s election cycle for state legislators.

For this year’s state budget, Gov. Hochul proposes to fully fund the agency tasked with running this new system (Public Campaign Finance Board), but she has not asked for enough money to match what candidates are already raising from small donors. Rather than step forward to make of the difference, state legislative leaders are suddenly silent on the matter, and some rank-and-file members are getting cold feet.  This whole new system is now in jeopardy, and things could revert back to the old system dominated by special interests, Big Donors, and party powerbrokers.

What to do RIGHT NOW!

Contact Governor Hochul and your State Senator and Assemblymember to demand that New York’s new public campaign finance program is fully funded in this year’s state budget, so that it can successfully operate for next year’s elections. Call on them to: “Stand up for small donors and grassroots democracy!”

• Email lawmakers via their websites: Governor Hochul, State Senate, State Assembly
• Post messages on lawmakers’ social media platforms (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, TikTok)
• Call lawmakers’ offices and leave a voice message: Governor Hothul (518-474-8390), State Senate (518-455-2800), State Assembly (518-455-4100)
• Alert others to this situation to ask them to take action via email and social media.

Thanks for stepping forward to help out at this crucial moment!  Having a successful and functional public financing system in New York will help level the playing field against all the various special interests that have long blocked a universal health care program here.

For the third year in a row, we held our Health Care Justice Leadership Annual Gala online, given the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. The good news is that the pandemic’s spread and scope continues to wane, so with luck, for our next Gala we’ll finally all be able to gather back together in-person late next fall. (Just in time for to celebrate our 30th anniversary!)

In case you missed this celebratory and inspiring event, you can just click here to watch it online.

Our honorees this year included:

• Former New York State Health Committee Chair Richard Gottfried, for his lifetime and career achievements and leadership on SO many health care justice issues.
• AARP New York, New York State Alliance for Retired Americans, and New York Statewide Senior Action Council, for their leadership in mobilizing New Yorkers on Medicare (and their allies) to push landmark Rx drug reform legislation through Congress, and building support for it within our state’s congressional delegation.
• Committee of Interns and Residents, New York State Nurses Association, and 1199 SEIU United Healthcare Workers East, for their leadership in placing patient access and quality of care at the core of their successful organizing drives and contract negotiations.
• Campaign for Affordable Hospitals, Community Coalition for the Safety Net, Community Voices for Health System Accountability, End Medical Debt, and Montefiore Bronx Accountability Coalition, for their various efforts to improve hospitals as mission-driven institutions serving patients and local communities.

We also heard inspiring and powerful keynote remarks from Dr. Kamini Doobay, founder of the NYC Coalition to Dismantle Racism in the Health System.

We thank everyone who contributed to this year’s Gala and attended via zoom, and all those groups and unions who joined our Host Committee, including:

• AARP New York State
• Callen-Lorde Community Health Network
• Citizen Action of New York
• Committee of Interns and Residents, SEIU
• Community Health Care Association of New York State
• Community Healthcare Network
• Community Service Society of New York
• District Council 37 AFSCME
• Doctors Council, SEIU
• Housing Works
• New York City Central Labor Council, AFL-CIO
• New York Social Service Employees, Local 371, DC 37 AFSCME
• New York State Nurses Association
• New York Statewide Senior Action Council
• #NYDocs Coalition
• Open Door Family Medical Centers
• Organization of Staff Analysts
• Physicians for a National Health Program, NY Metro Chapter
• Professional Staff Congress CUNY, Local 2334 AFT
• Project Hospitality
• 1199 SEIU-GNYHA Healthcare Education Project
• 1199 SEIU United Healthcare Workers East
• United University Professions, Local 2190 AFT

For those who didn’t have a chance yet to make a financial contribution, we still welcome your support! Just use these links below:

• Individuals
• Organizations and unions