As this year draws to a close, we want to thank all those groups, unions, and individuals who partnered in and/or financially supported our work in 2015.  We couldn’t have done all we have without you!

Some of our accomplishments this past year have included:

• Passage of the “New York Health Act” universal health care bill by the State Assembly in May (by over a 2/3rds majority) – via the Campaign for New York Health
• Advocating for New York to robustly maximize its options under the Affordable Care Act, including creating the exciting new “Essential Plan” that offers very low-cost coverage to the working poor – via Health Care for All New York
• Educating uninsured New Yorkers about their new coverage options under the Affordable Care Act (nearly 3 million have signed up so far since 2 years ago.) – via Health Care for All New York
• Securing dedicated funding from both New York State and New York City to enable community-based groups to reach out to uninsured people to get them enrolled in coverage and newly-insured people to help them learn how to use their coverage – via the People’s Budget Coalition for Public Health
• Celebrating and calling attention to the 50^th anniversary of Medicare and Medicaid as bedrock social programs for America and millions of New Yorkers over the decades – via No Bad Grand Bargain
• Leading efforts statewide and here in New York City to protect federal funding for health care and related social programs by resisting austerity policies, advocating for tax fairness, and promoting general economic development – via Restore the American Promise
• Contributing to new State and City government initiatives to improve access to services, improve the quality of care, promote population health, and make health care more affordable – via Health Care for All New York, Medicaid Matters New York, and the New York City Dept. of Health and Mental Hygiene
• Production of 9 cable TV shows (check them out on our website here), and 28 segments for WBAI’s “Health Action” show, including 3 listener call-ins.

We will be continuing and building on all these efforts in 2016, and look forward to joining with you on them.  In particular, we will be working to inject these issues into the election year discourse, to educate voters about what’s at stake for state and national government policies, concerning both those enacted and desired. 

If your group or union, or yourself personally, have not yet had time to support our recent “Health Care Justice Leadership Annual Gala”, please take a moment now to do so, before the end of this year.  You can either send us a check (420 West 45^th Street, DC 1707 AFSCME, New York, NY 10036), or contribute online via the donate button on this page.  Doing so will enable us to begin 2016 on strong footing.

Finally, please be sure follow everything we’re up to and the larger context of our work via our online platforms:  our blog and monthly calendar, our Facebook page, and our Twitter feed.

In closing, we wish everyone all the best for the coming new year.  By continuing to work together, we will advance the cause of universal health care, and the various health care justice efforts strategic to that goal.