New Yorkers for Single Payer Universal Healthcare Hunger Action Network of New York State

Universal Health Care Advocates Applaud State Assembly Passage of Resolution in Support of a federal Single Payer Universal Health Care system (HR676)The New York State Assembly yesterday overwhelmingly passed a resolution (Assm. Ortiz) calling upon Congress to enact a single payer universal health care system.

HR 676 (Conyers), known as Medicare for all, has 90 cosponsors, including NY Congressional representatives Engel, Hinchey, Maloney, McNulty, Nader, Owens, Rangel, Serrano, Towns, Weiner and Velazquez.

“The US spends more than twice as much on health care as the average of other developed nations, all of which boast universal coverage. Why is the U. S. so different? The short answer is that we alone treat health care as a commodity distributed according to the ability to pay, rather than as a social service to be distributed according to medical need,” said Mark Dunlea, Executive Director of Hunger Action Network of NYS.

“The cost and coverage of health insurance has become problematic for many working Americans and a major stumbling block in settling union contract negotiations. HR 676 would save billions of dollars annually by eliminating high overhead and profits of the private health insurance industry and HMOs. The transition to single-payer national health care would apply these savings to expanded and improved coverage for all. That is why the 2007 annual meeting of the Capital District Area Labor Federation unanimously endorsed HR676, and the National AFL-CIO is supporting a universal health care system based upon the successful Medicare program for seniors.” stated Mike Keenan, President, Troy Area Labor Council and a Vice President of the Capital District Area Labor Federation, AFL-CIO.

Assembly member Felix Ortiz, the lead sponsor of the resolution, remarked that “I commend the Assembly for adopting my health care resolution with overwhelming support, and I implore Congress to enact the United States National Insurance Act, so that we might stem the tide of the health care crisis which is currently plaguing our society. This is a problem which grows day by day. In New York along, there are now approximately 2.6 million people who do not have health insurance. People are finding themselves in a position where they must choose between paying for health care and paying for groceries. Consequently, people often wait until they are seriously ill to seek treatment. Everyone who needs treatment for an illness deserves access to affordable and high quality health care, and we as legislators have a sworn duty to protect those in our society in need of the most help.”

Nearly 50 million Americans are currently without health insurance, more than 75 million went without insurance for some length of time within the past two years, and tens of millions more have inadequate coverage. More than 18,000 Americans die annually due to a lack of insurance. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. noted that “of all the forms of inequality, injustice in health care is the most shocking and inhumane.”

A recent national survey by Indiana University of 2,193 doctors found a solid majority, almost 60 percent, supporting government legislation to establish national health insurance (NHI) — a 10 percent increase in support since 2002. (32% oppose it, 9% are neutral) Support for NHI is particularly strong among psychiatrists (83 percent), pediatric sub-specialists (71 percent), emergency medicine physicians (69 percent), general pediatricians (65 percent), general internists (64 percent) and family physicians (60 percent).

It is estimated that a single payer national health care program could save as much as $350 billion a year (New England Journal of Medicine, 2003) by eliminating the system of private health insurance. As much as a third of every health care dollar going through private health insurance goes to pay for their overhead, profits, marketing costs and excessive CEO salaries. Doctors on average have to hire 2.5 staff people just to deal with the conflicting paperwork, rules and bureaucracy of private health insurance.

“A prime benefit of a national single payer system is that it would save several hundred billion dollars annually by eliminating the high overhead and profits of the private, investor-owned insurance industry. Doctors and hospitals would be freed from the burdens and expenses of paperwork created by having to deal with multiple insurers with different rules – often rules designed to avoid payment,” added Dunlea. “We are the only industrialized country to allow for-profit insurance companies to be middlemen in our health system. In their drive to enroll healthy (and profitable) patients and screen out the sick, private insurance waste vast sum on billing, marketing, underwriting, utilization review and other activities that enhance profits but divert resources from care and hassle patients and physicians,” Dunlea added.

Among the hundreds of groups in NY supporting HR 676 include the Physicians for a National Health Program, New York State Nurses Association, NYS Academy of Family Physicians, Healthcare Now, Tompkins County Health Care Task Force, Hunger Action Network of NYS, Healthcare Work Group (Otsego, Delaware & Chenango Counties). Presbyterian Church USA. United Auto Workers, Albany Central Federation of Labor, AFSMCE District Council 37, Professional Staff Congress-CUNY, CWA Local 1180, United University Professions (Local 2190 AFT); Latinos for National Health Insurance and League of Women Voters of NYS.

Single Payer is defined as financing health care expenditures for the entire population through a single source, presumably the government, with funds collected through progressive taxation of citizens and businesses.

The groups are also urging the state to adopt a single payer system as soon as possible. Single payer legislation (A7354 Gottfried / S3107 Schneiderman) is pending in both the Assembly and Senate. A majority of Assembly members (85) are co-sponsors of the single payer bill.

While the United States has very skilled health providers, our health care system performs poorly, with its overall quality only ranked 37th by the World Health Organization. US spending on health care is now over 2.1 trillion dollars – nearly $7,000 per person. This is more the double the world average of $2,571. This amounts to a whopping 15.5% of our GNP on health care – far more than any other country – which puts our businesses at a competitive disadvantage in the international marketplace.

Public opinion polls have consistently shown strong public support for a universal health care system. For instance, a March 2007 poll by CBS/ NY Times found that 64 percent of the respondents said the government should guarantee health insurance for all; 27 percent said it should not. An overwhelming majority in the poll said the health care system needed fundamental change or total reorganization.

- – - – -

LEGISLATIVE RESOLUTION memorializing the United States Congress to enact H.R. 676, the United States National Health Insurance Act

WHEREAS, Every person in New York State and in all the United States deserves access to affordable, quality health care; and
WHEREAS, There is a growing crisis in health care in the United States of America, manifested in rising healthcare costs, increased premiums, out-of-pocket spending, decreased international business competitiveness, and massive layoffs; and
WHEREAS, Up until February of 2008, statistics show that approximately 2.6 million New Yorkers lacked health insurance; and
WHEREAS, Those insured now often experience unacceptable medical debt and sometimes life-threatening delays in obtaining health care; and
WHEREAS, One-half of all personal bankruptcies are due to illnesses or medical bills; and
WHEREAS, The increasing expense of Medicaid and the rising costs of insuring state employees and teachers can best be met not by limiting benefits, but by expanding them under a national, publicly-funded health insurance program; and
WHEREAS, The complex bureaucracy arising from our system of fragmented, for-profit, multi-payer system of healthcare financing consumes approximately 30 percent of the United States’ healthcare
spending; and
WHEREAS, United States Representatives John Conyers and Dennis Kucinich have introduced H.R. 676, the United States National Health Insurance Act, in the United States House of Representatives for the 109th Congress, this Act would provide a universal, comprehensive, single payer system of high quality national health insurance; now, therefore, be it
RESOLVED, That this Legislative Body pause in its deliberations to respectfully memorialize the Congress of the United States to enact H.R. 676, the United States National Health Insurance Act; and be it further
RESOLVED, That copies of this Resolution, suitably engrossed, be transmitted to the President of the Senate of the United States, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, and to each member of the
Congress of the United States from the State of New York.