Advocates rally for the Coverage for All bill in Albany (photo: Daniel Altschuler/@altochulo)

After the last three years, New York’s health care system continues to face an unprecedented crisis – particularly for safety net hospitals located in historically marginalized communities that primarily serve uninsured patients struggling to access care. These are the same low-income neighborhoods that bore the brunt of COVID-19 and have long suffered from the effects of New York’s two-tiered health care system. To reduce health inequities, the State must fix the

Seeking health care (photo: Michael Appleton/Mayor's Office)

Over the past three years, New York has been the epicenter of a global pandemic, seen the outbreak of mpox, a reemergence of polio, and recently experienced spikes in flu, COVID, and RSV. Currently, an unprecedented number of asylum-seekers are looking to New York City and its safety-net health-care providers for care.

Come April 1, the state will face another potential crisis, as 7 million New Yorkers will have to undergo a difficult and error-prone process

Gov. Hochul and Mayor Adams (photo: Ed Reed/Mayoral Photography Office)

Governor Kathy Hochul and Mayor Eric Adams have a strong working relationship, one that they have repeatedly emphasized at joint announcements, news conferences, and speeches. It’s in clear contrast to their predecessors, who spent years squabbling over many issues, both parochial and consequential to New Yorkers. But with the recent release of the governor’s budget plan, the two first-term Democrats find themselves at odds over various cuts, cost shifts, and unfunded mandates for New York City that the mayor is none too

Gov. Hochul visits health care providers (photo: Kevin P. Coughlin/Governor's Office)

With her 2023 agenda, it’s clear Governor Kathy Hochul wants to be seen as a champion for New Yorkers who face significant health disparities. But for all she pledges to do, she’s failing to rise to the challenge to address a serious health care crisis coming this April.

On April 1, the state will divert funding away from safety net providers like mine —

Then-Gov. Cuomo holds a health care meeting (photo: Philip Kamrass/Governor's Office)

New York State overpaid more than $194 million in Medicaid payments during the pandemic after state officials failed to move eligible recipients to a cheaper funding plan, according to the Office of State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli.

An audit of Medicaid payments from March 2021 to March 2022 found the state Department of Health continued to pay higher premiums to care management organizations even after receiving federal authorization to move some Medicaid recipients to a different plan at a fraction of

Gov. Hochul at a Pride parade (photo: Don Pollard/Office of Governor Kathy Hochul)

As we celebrate Pride Month, the New York State Department of Health (DOH) has just released asobering report revealing the startling health disparities faced by LGBTQI+ New Yorkers. We need continued action to advance equity in our health-care system.

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Good health care is essential (photo: Don Pollard/Governor’s Office)

More than 5.5 million New Yorkers rely on Medicaid managed care health plans for their care. Many of these members are among the state’s most at-risk residents, with multiple health conditions that require coordination of numerous services. This includes both physical health and mental health care, long-term services and supports, as well as help coordinating social services, such as housing, employment, education, and food access. They often rely on Alzheimer’s Disease Resource Center (ADRC) and other

Gov. Cuomo & Budget Director Mujica (photo: Governor's Office)

The New York State Division of the Budget surprised the public this past November with an announcement the State faced a $6.1 billion deficit to close for the 2021 budget due by April 1, 2020. The DOB disclosed in its Mid-Year Update that Medicaid costs were exploding -- dramatically more than anticipated -- in both the budget adopted in April 2019 for the current year (fiscal year 2020), as well as for the next one (FY 2021). The budget agency said the situation demanded immediate cuts to both

(photo: Governor's Office)

To The Editor,

I read with interest Gerald Benjamin's op-ed, Minding the Medicaid Gap, published on January 24, 2020. It's an excellent deep dive into the funding and administration of Medicaid at the state and local level.

I disagree, however, that raising taxes is necessarily unpalatable. Experts have identified ways to raise $40 billion in revenue, per year, by taxing New York's wealthiest individuals and corporations. Here's what

Another way of thinking about the state's Medicaid mess (photo by Kevin Coughlin/Governor's Office)

With Medicaid being blamed for the roughly $6 billion deficit our state is facing, most politicians see only two possible solutions: raise taxes or cut services.

Yet a far better third option exists: get rid of the for-profit insurers getting rich off our tax dollars, and recoup those funds for actual patient services.

Payments to private insurers are the silent bloat in New York's Medicaid budget, driving up our cost more than any other state in the

(photo: Darren McGee/Office of Governor Andrew M. Cuomo)

Albany chatter in anticipation of Governor Andrew Cuomo’s 2020 State of the State message was dominated by the prospect of a $6.1 billion budget gap. How to fill it? Tax? Cut programs? All unpalatable.

Of course, budget gaps are nothing new. In an opinion essay published in the Rochester Beacon just three days before the governor spoke, his Budget Director Robert Mujica pointed out that annual “baseline gaps” are routinely closed by controlling spending growth. “Last year,” Mujica wrote,

(photo: Governor's Office)

When Governor Andrew Cuomo took office in 2011, the state faced a $10 billion budget gap that necessitated massive cuts in spending for the next fiscal year. The state’s Medicaid program was redesigned to cut $2.7 billion in spending. School aid was also cut by about $2.7 billion. There were cuts to state agency spending and redesigns that reduced another $1.5 billion. The rest was covered with new resources, revenue enhancements (though, no new taxes, the governor ...

(photo: Governor's Office)

Next week Governor Cuomo will unveil his proposed budget for the state fiscal year beginning April 1. In his November modification of the current year’s budget and financial plan there was a preview of the severity of the problem he faces: a significant deficit -- originally $6 billion, now reduced to $4 billion in the current fiscal year, which ends in only 12 weeks -- that is projected at $6.1 billion for next

(photo: the Governor's Office)

Rates of youth suicide are climbing across the country. New York State, where youth suicide is the second leading cause of death for adolescents, is no exception. With adequate investment in mental health and substance use services for children and adolescents, many of these deaths could be prevented. Yet, New York is planning to further reduce access to these kind of behavioral health services for children, even as more than half of children across the state with a mental or behavioral health condition do not receive the treatment

What's The [Data] Point? Episode 86 -- $28.8 billion, with Andrew Rein, Andrew Perry, and Ana Champeny of Citizens Budget Commission [You can download What's The [Data] Point? wherever you get your podcasts, including on iTunes]

$28.8 billion is the cumulative four-year budget gap facing New York State between fiscal years 2020 and 2023. CBC President Andrew Rein joined the

(photo: Kevin P. Coughlin/Office of Governor Andrew M. Cuomo)

New York State had achieved the highest percentage of residents with health insurance coverage of the four most populous states in the country by 2017, according to the Kaiser Family Foundation, one of the nation's leading health research organizations.

Ninety-four percent of New York's residents had health insurance coverage that

What's The [Data] Point? Episode 40 -- 176,000, with Patrick Orecki [You can download What's The [Data] Point? wherever you get your podcasts, including on iTunes]

176,000

What's The [Data] Point? Episode 30 -- $72.4 Billion, with Charles Brecher [You can download What's The [Data] Point? wherever you get your podcasts, including on iTunes]

Health care

Gov. Cuomo outlines the budget agreement (photo via The Governor's Office)

AGov. Andrew Cuomo welcomed reporters into the Capitol's Red Room for the first time in nearly a year to announce a budget deal at 8:30 p.m. Thursday night. The announcement came as both houses of the Legislature took a break from voting on budget bills that had already been introduced, yet neither legislative majority leader joined Cuomo for the press conference.

Legislators from the minorities of the two houses lamented having little time to

De Blasio (photo: Rob Bennett/Mayoral Photography Office)

Mayor Bill de Blasio said on Monday afternoon that he has been in regular contact with Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie and that he spoke with Governor Andrew Cuomo earlier in the day, but that he did not gain much clarity as Albany budget negotiations enter their final days.

A new state budget is due by midnight Thursday, with the state's fiscal year beginning

De Blasio & Heastie (Michael Appleton/Mayoral Photography Office)

Mayor Bill de Blasio didn't need to see the Assembly and Senate one-house budgets to know where he stands with each chamber - Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie is a close ally of the mayor, his fellow New York City Democrat, while Senate Republicans hold a major grudge against de Blasio for leading a failed effort to boot them from the majority two years ago. Most Republican legislators, who control the Senate but not the Assembly, are also philosophically opposed to much of de Blasio's

New York City Hall

What to watch for this week in New York politics:

Last week, Governor Andrew Cuomo released his Executive Budget for fiscal year 2017, which, for the state, begins April 1. It was not without controversy for the city, with Cuomo including significant cuts to state aid for city Medicaid and CUNY costs. Mayor Bill de Blasio and others from the city pushed back quickly and firmly,

Gov. Cuomo (photo: Kevin P. Coughlin/Office of the Governor)

The year 2016 could go down in history as the pivotal year in New York's fight against HIV/AIDS. Nearly 35 years after The New York Times reported the first cases of what would later be recognized as AIDS, New York State is poised to become the first jurisdiction in the world to end its HIV epidemic, even without a cure, by stopping new infections and ending AIDS deaths.

Thanks to Governor Andrew Cuomo's leadership, New York State has developed a viable plan that, if fully funded

NYC First Lady Chirlane McCray at a Planned Parenthood rally (photo: @Chirlane) 

In the face of federal debate and brinksmanship over funding for Planned Parenthood, many in New York City have doubled down on support for the women's health care organization.

In the past month, the city has seen the...