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Do YOU understand the new coverage choices under the ACA?

Posted on February 25, 2013 by Arianne Slagle

Coverage choices

Thanks to the Affordable Care Act (ACA), more than 1 million uninsured  New Yorkers will newly have access to affordable health insurance options starting this fall.  That’s a lot of folks who will need to wade through a lot of new information in the coming months.

HCFANY will be holding a briefing in New York City on Thursday, March 7th at the Interchurch Center from 9:00 am – 11:30 am to go over the necessary public outreach and enrollment efforts that will need to happen in order to ensure that the greatest number of New Yorkers benefit from the ACA.  Specifically, we will be going over the following questions:

  • How will New Yorkers learn about new health coverage options?
  • How is New York State going to reach out to and sign up the uninsured?
  • What will individuals, families, and small employers in New York l need to know?
  • What’s to be gained if we do it all right  (…and at risk if we don’t)?
  • What can our elected officials do to help make it go smoothly?
  • How can groups across New York contribute and participate?

This meeting is open to all New York members, allies, colleagues and new friends in the NYC area.

For more information, or to RSVP, click here!

 

Filed under: ACA, Comprehensive Coverage, Employer Sponsored Health Insurance, Insurance reform, Medicaid, New York Health Benefit Exchange, New York Health Reform, Underinsured, Uninsured, young adult | Tagged: , , | Comments Off

A new year, a new set of challenges

Posted on January 18, 2013 by Arianne Slagle

Mark HannayKudos to everyone able to make the trek up to Albany yesterday during the depths of a particularly nasty flu season - we actually had a great turnout! 

Fellow HCFANY-ers and guests got a chance to go over and discuss our advocacy agenda for this yeat, which centers around implementation of consumer-friendly Exchange and strategies to fill in the gaps in affordable coverage.  In particular, we aim to focus on the following 5 things:

  • A robust public engagement campaign
  • The creation of a basic health plan
  • Merging the individual and small group markets
  • Extending Child Health Plus to adults, and
  • Promoting health equity,

Members of the HCFANY Steering Committee break it down for us

You can read more about HCFANY’s advocacy agenda by clicking here.

Danielle Holahan, Deputy Director of the NYS Exchange, also gave a brief update on what’s happening with the Exchange.  You can see her presentation by clicking here.

Stay tuned in the coming days for more specific details on our advocacy agenda items!

 

Filed under: ACA, Federal health reform, Insurance Exchange, Underinsured, Uninsured | Tagged: , , , | Comments Off

Register Today for the HCFANY Annual Meeting!

Posted on January 4, 2013 by Arianne Slagle

Click here to register!

Yes, it’s a a new year and that means its time for the HCFANY annual meeting! Join us on January 17, 2013 in Albany to celebrate our success over the past year and strategize how, together, we can work with New York State to develop a Health Insurance Exchange that will achieve our long-term goal of quality, affordable health care for all New Yorkers.  

The meeting will take place in the “Well” of the Legislative Office Building (LOB) in Albany from 11 am – 3:30 pm (coffee and registration at 10:30 am).  Our tentative agenda for the day includes:

  • Advocacy goals for 2013 - What we need to accomplish next for New York
  • Update on ACA implementation in New York (Exchange staff has been invited)
  • Our annual “Advocate of the Year” Award 
  • How to talk about ACA implementation to policymakers, the media, and the public 
  • Upcoming workgroup sessions: Help us plan our 2013 activities 

Click here to register!

 

 

Filed under: ACA, Federal health reform, Governor Cuomo, Insurance reform, New York Health Benefit Exchange, New York Health Reform, New York State Budget, New York State Politics, Small Business, State budget, State Department of Health, Underinsured, Uninsured, Women, young adult | Tagged: , , , , , , | Comments Off

Tele-Town Hall on Women’s Preventive Health TOMORROW!

Posted on July 31, 2012 by Arianne Slagle

For many women, the fight for insurance coverage of women’s preventive health services has been a very long one. 

But, thanks to the Affordable Care Act (ACA), women will no longer need to worry about getting much of the preventive health care they need because of the costs associated.  

A new provision in the ACA is scheduled to go into effect starting tomorrow, August 1st, which requires all new health plans will have to cover the following services without co-pays or deductibles:

  • Well-woman visits
  • Gestational diabetes screening
  • HPV DNA testing
  • STI counseling, and HIV screening and counseling
  • Contraception and contraceptive counseling
  • Breastfeeding support, supplies, and counseling
  • Domestic violence screening

To kick off the event tomorrow, Senator Mark Begich (D-AK), Chairman of the Senate Democratic Steering and Outreach Committee, Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), Senator Barbara Mikulski (D-MD) and other Democratic Senators will be hosting a Tele-Town Hall on the new free preventive services for women under the ACA. 

The call will be held tommorrow, Wednesday, August 1, 2012 at 3:00 p.m. ET. 

For dial-in information, please RSVP to: https://democrats.senate.gov/steering/tele-town-hall-on-free-preventive-services-for-women/

 **Please note that this call is not for press purposes**

 

 

Filed under: ACA, Affordable, Federal health reform, Insurance reform, Underinsured, Women, young adult | Tagged: , , , , | Comments Off

Women, we can (and will) do better.

Posted on July 16, 2012 by Arianne Slagle

A new Commonwealth Fund report released last Friday shows that American women are more likely to go without needed health care because of cost and have a harder time paying for medical bills than women in 10 other countries with unversal health care systems in place.

These countries included Germany, the United Kingdom, France, Canada, Sweden, Norway, Switzerland, the Netherlands, New Zealand, and Australia.

A total of 43% of women surveyed in the U.S. reported that they had gone without needed care or had not filled a prescription due to cost in the past year.  Only 7% of women in the U.K. reported having the same problem.  

The report also showed that the number of unininsured and underinsured women in the U.S. is climbing.  18.7 million women were uninsured in the U.S. in 2010, up from 12.8 million in 2000.  In 2010, 16.7 million women were underinsured, up from 10.3 million in 2003.

However, times they are a changing!  Thanks to the Affordable Care Act (ACA), the U.S. may soon catch up to other industrialized nations when it comes to women’s health. The health reform law will dramatically lower women’s exposure to high health care costs and remove a number of barriers to  health care. And, while a lot of the major insurance expansions won’t start until 2014, a lot of the early reforms are already helping women access affordable care.

The report estimates that, once fully implemented, the ACA will provide near-universal health insurance coverage for women. Only 8% of women are estimated to remain uninsured, compared with the 20% who lack health insurance today. 

Click here to read the full Commonwealth Fund report, titled “Realizing Health Reform’s Potential: Oceans Apart: The Higher Health Costs of Women in the U.S. Compared to Other Nations, and How Reform Is Helping.”

 

 

Filed under: ACA, Affordable, Comprehensive Coverage, Federal health reform, Insurance reform, Medical debt, Underinsured, Uninsured, Women, young adult | Tagged: , , , | Comments Off

It’s funny because it’s true.

Posted on July 13, 2012 by Arianne Slagle

With Wednesday’s repeat vote by the U.S. House of Representatives to repeal the Affordable Care Act (yawn) despite its growing public popularity and so closely following the Supreme Court’s decision to largely uphold the law, it is becoming abundantly clear that the real issue here is not constitutionality of the law or any moral objections to its lifesaving provisions.  Rather, it is simply a moral objection to the party and president behind the law.

Putting politics over people is nothing new.  But progressing beyond the point where it becomes blatantly obvious is a big political risk.  Did I mention that all 8 Republican Members of Congress from New York voted on Wednesday in favor of repealing the ACA?  The presidential election is now looming just a few months away, so only time will tell how the public will react to this proverbial beating of a dead horse. 

In the meantime, why not let our fearless leaders know what we think about them risking our own health and well-being for the sake of saving face in front of party leaders.  HCFANY members Citizen Action of NY have put together a nifty petition to make this easy to do.   Take a minute right now to sign the petition to New York’s Republican Congressional Delegation, telling them to stop playing games with people’s lives.

Click here to sign the petition now!

 

Filed under: ACA, Accountability, Federal health reform, Underinsured, Uninsured | Tagged: , , , | Comments Off

How great was last week?

Posted on July 2, 2012 by Arianne Slagle

We’re still riding the high from last week’s Supreme Court decision to uphold the ACA.  As we wrap up this Monday, we’re still getting photos and video in from the many events that HCFANY co-hosted around the state.  What a great party!

The NYC rally was held in Foley Square in lower Manhattan and boasted an all-star lineup of speakers including Senator Tom Duane (pictured above), NYC Council Speaker Christine Quinn, Assembly Member Richard Gottdfried, and Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer, to name just a few.

We also had regular folks like you and me come up and tell their stories of how the ACA has helped (or will help) them.  Check out the video below of Adrew Telzak from Queens, telling his story of how he was able to keep his insurance thanks to the ACA:

The 90 degree heat did not deter a large crowd from gathering, nor did it keep the press from coming out in droves. Anybody watching the evening news would have seen clips of us speaking out in support of the Affordable Care Act. It was such a great time!

Check out more photos of this and other events at HCFANY’s Flickr page by clicking here.

 

Filed under: ACA, Federal health reform, Insurance reform, Small Business, Underinsured, Uninsured, Women, young adult | Tagged: , , , , , , , , | Comments Off

THE AFFORDABLE CARE ACT IS UPHELD!!!

Posted on June 28, 2012 by Arianne Slagle

It’s true! The decision was just handed down just a little bit ago.  The verdict? The entire law is upheld – including the individual mandate! 

It looks like there will only be one small change to the Medicaid expansion.  The ACA had originally stated that states could expand Medicaid eligibility to people up to 133% of the Federal Poverty Level, and that the federal government would basically pick up the entire cost for it, but that if they didn’t expand they could risk losing their existing funds.  The Supreme Court changed this so that states who don’t choose to expand their Medicaid eligibility won’t risk losing funding. 

Overall, this is a HUGE win for Americans, and a HUGE win for New Yorkers! And who do we have to thank? Justice Roberts! Who miraculously took a big one for the team by siding with the left-leaning justices on this.  That is one man who will be heavily toasted to (and cursed) by millions tonight.

So, what should we do with this information? Why, let’s celebrate of course!!!  Join HCFANY around this great State of New York TODAY at a series of public events for folks to speak up and celebrate this big victory!!! 

  • Albany: 3:00 PM at the Capital (State Street side). Contact Bob Cohen at bcohen@citizenactionny.org or (518) 465-4600 x104 for more info.
  • Binghamton: 4:00 PM at the Federal Building, 15 Henry Street. Contact Mary Clark at cabing@citizenactionny.org or (607) 723-0110 for more info.
  • Buffalo: 3:00 PM in the lobby of Congressman Higgins’ office, 726 Exchange Street. Contact Natalie Luczkowiak at nluczkowiak@citizenactionny.org or (716) 855-1522 x2 for more info.
  • Cortland: 5:00 PM at the U.S. Post Office, 88 Main Street. Contact Janet Steck at jsteck@twcny.rr.com or (607) 749-7016 for more info.
  • New York City: New Location! 5:30 PM (assemble at 5:15 pm) in Foley Square in lower Manhattan, across from the Federal Courthouse at the African American Burial Ground Monument (Take 4, 5, 6, J, M, N, or R trains to City Hall-Brooklyn Bridge stations). Contact Mark Hannay at metrohealth@igc.org or (917) 318-5008 for more info.
  • Syracuse: 4:00 PM at the Federal Building, 100 Clinton Street. Contact Lanika Mabrey at lmabrey@citizenactionny.org or (315) 435-2480.

We hope to see you there!!!

 

Filed under: ACA, Accountability, Affordable, Consumer Assistance, Employer Sponsored Health Insurance, Federal health reform, Insurance Exchange, Insurance reform, New York Health Reform, Premiums, Underinsured, Uninsured, Women, young adult | Tagged: , , , , | Comments Off

New location for NYC SCOTUS Rally!

Posted on June 27, 2012 by Arianne Slagle

Due to a last-minute change of plans (and a snafu with the permits) the location of HCFANY’s New York City rally to respond to the forthcoming Supreme Court ruling has been changed to Foley Square in lower Manhattan.  All other locations remain the same.

It’s getting close! If you havent already, please be sure to check out the locations and  times of the events scheduled around the state and plan to attend the one in your area.  For now, it looks like all events will be taking place this Thursday, 6/28. 

Be there or be square!

June 28th HCFANY Statewide Events to Respond to the Supreme Court Ruling: Will the Supreme Court Affirm the Right to Health Care in America?

Featured speakers will include public officials, advocates, community and labor leaders, and everyday New Yorkers telling their own stories about what the Affordable Care Act means for them and their families.

  • Albany: 3:00 PM at the Capital (State Street side). Contact Bob Cohen at bcohen@citizenactionny.org or (518) 465-4600 x104 for more info.
  • Binghamton: 4:00 PM at the Federal Building, 15 Henry Street. Contact Mary Clark at cabing@citizenactionny.org or (607) 723-0110 for more info.
  • Buffalo: 3:00 PM in the lobby of Congressman Higgins’ office, 726 Exchange Street. Contact Natalie Luczkowiak at nluczkowiak@citizenactionny.org or (716) 855-1522 x2 for more info.
  • Cortland: 5:00 PM at the U.S. Post Office, 88 Main Street. Contact Janet Steck at jsteck@twcny.rr.com or (607) 749-7016 for more info.
  • New York City: New Location! 5:30 PM (assemble at 5:15 pm) in Foley Square in lower Manhattan, across from the Federal Courthouse at the African American Burial Ground Monument (Take 4, 5, 6, J, M, N, or R trains to City Hall-Brooklyn Bridge stations). Contact Mark Hannay at metrohealth@igc.org or (917) 318-5008 for more info.
  • Syracuse: 4:00 PM at the Federal Building, 100 Clinton Street. Contact Lanika Mabrey at lmabrey@citizenactionny.org or (315) 435-2480.

Filed under: ACA, Federal health reform, Insurance reform, Small Business, Underinsured, Uninsured, Women, young adult | Tagged: , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off

Yes, but what about ME?

Posted on June 25, 2012 by Arianne Slagle

Well, since the Supreme Court ruling on the ACA wasn’t released today, we can pretty much assume that it will come out this Thursday.  But, in the meantime, a lot of folks have been asking what the impact of all this Supreme Court business will have on New York.

Lucky for us, our good friends at the Community Service Society (CSS) have put together a briefing on what the potential rulings could be, and what impact each would have on our state.  The document goes through a quick refresher on the Affordable Care Act and the impact it has already had on our fine state, then it goes over each of the potential Supreme Court scenarios and what each will mean for New York.

To view CSS’s briefing on the potential Supreme Court rulings, click here.

Also – be sure to stay tuned for more updates and information on HCFANY statewide events that will be taking place in response to the forthcoming Supreme Court ruling!

 

 

Filed under: ACA, Federal health reform, Insurance reform, New York Health Reform, Small Business, Underinsured, Uninsured, Women, young adult | Tagged: , , , , , , , | Comments Off

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