Health Care

Governor Paterson Names Advisory Committee to Help Health Care Reform Cabinet

GOVERNOR PATERSON SELECTS BALCONY TO ADVISORY COMMITTEE TO HELP HEALTH CARE REFORM CABINET

BALCONY this week (Tuesday) was named by Governor David Paterson to the Health Care Reform Advisory Committee, which will provide input to the Governor’s Health Care Reform Cabinet on the implementation of federal health care reform in New York State. The Advisory Committee includes 37 organizations representing health care providers, consumers, businesses, organized labor, local governments, health plans and health insurers, and health policy experts.

“Federal health care reform will have a significantly positive impact for New York’s residents, families, small business owners and the 2.5 million New Yorkers who are currently uninsured,” Governor Paterson said. “It is essential that we get health reform right, making the most of this opportunity to improve access to health care while reducing cost. Our broad advisory group will help us achieve this goal.”

“BALCONY is honored to be a participant in the Governor’s panel to continue to find common ground between business and labor on the implemental of health care reform in New York State,” stated BALCONY Director Lou Gordon. “For the past 3 years we have been working with small businesses, labor unions, health care advocates, providers and trade associations in helping to forge a workable coalition that provides affordable Health Care for New Yorkers. In fact, in April HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius detailed the new Health Care Law to a BALCONY New York City Symposium which featured a broad range of experts, providers and consumers.”

BALCONY has in fact held public and private health care forums in Buffalo, Rochester, Albany, White Plains, Nassau County and New York City all designed to provide a positive discourse on the Health Care needs of all New Yorkers,” stated BALCONY co-chair Alan Lubin, formerly Executive VP of NYSUT.

“Our BALCONY concerns have focused on the affordability, availability, portability of health care benefits to business and recipients, insuring young adults and the provision of electronic medical records,” stated BALCONY co-chair Bruce Ventimiglia, Chairman of Saratoga Capital Management.

The Advisory Committee will advise the Cabinet on reform provisions and ensure stakeholder and public engagement in all aspects of federal health care reform. It will support the implementation of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act and the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act. In addition, Advisory Committee Workgroups will be created to focus on specific issues and additional organizations with expertise will be asked to join those work groups. A series of public forums across the State will also be held to provide opportunities for further stakeholder input.

Wendy Saunders, Deputy Secretary for Health, Medicaid and Oversight and Chair of the Health Care Reform Cabinet, said: “I commend Governor Paterson for his dedication to health care reform and for his efforts to expand access to quality health care for all New Yorkers. Implementing federal health care reform is a complex task, and many decisions must be made by the end of this year. We need public participation and input to help make reform a success and the Advisory Committee is an essential part of that input.”

The Health Care Reform Cabinet is responsible for:

• Identifying deadlines for the completion of interim or final steps necessary or desired to comply with the provisions of federal health care reform;
• Determining those provisions of federal health care reform with which the State must comply and those that are optional, and evaluating whether participation in optional programs is appropriate;
• Assessing the State’s capacity to carry out those provisions of federal health care reform that affect or potentially affect the State;
• Identifying any changes needed to State statute, regulation, policy or procedure in order to implement such provisions, and facilitating the achievement of such changes as necessary;
• Communicating with the federal government, local governments, other states, health care providers, and other stakeholders as advisable or necessary; and
• Providing public outreach to educate individuals on the implementation of the reforms as necessary.

Under Governor Paterson’s leadership, New York State has become a national leader in expanding access to quality health care for children and adults through its public health insurance programs, including Child Health Plus, Family Health Plus, Healthy New York and Medicaid, while implementing efficiencies to ensure that funds are used in the most cost-effective manner. New York is the only state in the nation with both open enrollment and pure community rating and has been a leader in efforts to guarantee access to private health insurance coverage.

Organizations participating in the Governor’s Health Care Reform Advisory Committee include:

• 1199 SEIU
• AFL-CIO
• Business and Labor Coalition of New York
• Business Council of New York State
• Centerstate CEO
• Chamber Alliance of New York State
• Children’s Defense Fund
• Coalition of New York State Public Health Plans
• Community Health Care Association of New York State
• Community Service Society
• Consumer Directed Choices
• Empire Justice Center
• Family Planning Advocates
• Finger Lakes Health Systems Agency
• Greater New York Hospital Association
• Health Care for All New York
• Healthcare Association of New York State
• Hispanic Federation
• Medicaid Matters
• Medical Society of the State of New York
• Medicare Rights Center
• National Black Leadership Commission on AIDS
• New York Health Plan Association
• New York Immigration Coalition
• New York State Association of Counties
• New York State Association of Health Underwriters
• New York State Conference of Blue Cross Plans
• New York State Council for Community Behavioral Healthcare
• New York State Health Foundation
• New Yorkers for Accessible Health Coverage
• Office of the Mayor of New York City
• P2 Collaborative of Western New York
• Partnership for New York City
• Project CHARGE
• United Hospital Fund
• Visiting Nurse Service of New York
• Young Invincibles

For additional information on health care reform implementation in New York State, please visit: www.HealthCareReform.ny.gov.

AARP says Brand-Name Drug Prices Up 8% in 2009

by Duff Wilson

A new report on retail prices of brand-name drugs shows the 217 products most used by older Americans increased  by an average of 8.3 percent during 2009, the largest increase in years, even as inflation was negative.

Over the last five years, according to the report to be released on Wednesday by the senior lobby AARP, the retail prices for the most popular brand-name drugs increased 41.5 percent, while the consumer price index rose 13.3 percent. An AARP official called for measures to hold down drug prices.

Drug industry officials challenged the finding, however, saying select brand-name prices did not reflect the reality of more people using low-price generic drugs. Generics now account for about 75 percent of all dispensed prescriptions in the United States, according to IMS Health, a research firm.

The industry pointed to a broader survey of drug prices showing they rose by 3.4 percent during 2009. The survey, conducted by the government for its official Consumer Price Index, includes generic as well as brand-name drug prices, Jonathan Church, an economist at the Bureau of Labor Statistics, said on Tuesday.

John A. Vernon, an assistant professor of health policy at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, praised the AARP for changing its methods to count retail prices instead of wholesale prices. But Professor Vernon, who had consulted for drug companies and challenged the AARP wholesale price report at a Congressional hearing last year, said its new report was still flawed.

“It can easily be shown that branded prices are higher here than they are in other countries, but we have the lowest and the most competitively priced generic drugs in the world, and the generic share is going up rapidly,” he said. “Just focusing on brands I think is unfair.”

John C. Rother, executive vice president for policy and strategy for the AARP, agreed that generic drug prices had held stable or declined. But he said the group’s new retail price analysis showed why many older Americans were struggling to pay the cost of brand-name drugs they needed for chronic medical conditions.

AARP has changed the method of its annual drug report to look at retail prices, responding to industry complaints last year that measures of wholesale prices, showing brand-name increases far in excess of inflation, were misleading because they did not consider manufacturer discounts. The new report, however, finds the same result on price.

“Brand-name retail prices have been accelerating year-to-year even when inflation has been nonexistent in the rest of the economy,” Mr. Rother said in an interview by phone Tuesday.

The incontinence drug Flomax led the way with a 24.8 percent rise in retail price last year, to $4.09 a pill. Flomax sells for $4.42 a pill on drugstore.com, while its generic equivalent, tamsulosin, sells for $3.63 a pill.

Ann Wainwright, a spokeswoman for Boehringer Ingelheim, did not answer questions about Flomax prices in an e-mail, but said the company was committed to access to medicines, including free medication for eligible low-income patients.

The Flomax patent expired this year, opening the gates for generic competition.

During 2009, among the most popular brand-name drugs, retail prices rose 6 percent, to $5.40 a day, on Nexium from AstraZeneca; 8.8 percent, to $5.06 a day, on Plavix from Bristol-Myers Squibb; 7 percent, to $5.50 a day, on Prevacid from Takeda; 6.8 percent, to $4.21 a day, on Protonix from Wyeth; and 4.1 percent, to $4.03, on Lipitor 20-milligram tablets from Pfizer, the report says.

The AARP reported overall increases of 8.3 percent in 2009, 7.9 percent in 2008, 7 percent in 2007, 6.1 percent in 2006, when Medicare drug benefits started, and 6 percent in 2005. The Bureau of Labor Statistics, including generic prices, reported drug price increases for the same years of 3.4, 2.5, 1.4, 4.3 and 3.5 percent. Both used weighted averages to account for product usage.

The AARP report says many older Americans rely on brand-name drugs for chronic illnesses. It says higher prices push them more quickly into a coverage gap known as the “doughnut hole,” where they have to pay the full cost of drugs.

That gap is being phased out over the next 10 years under the new health care law, including drug industry discounts on brand-name drug prices in the coverage gap.

The Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America, the industry trade group in Washington, released a statement on Tuesday saying “prescription medicines represent a small and decreasing share of growth in overall health care costs in the United States.”

“Not only is the recent rate of growth for prescription medicines historically low, but the recent decline in drug spending growth has contributed to one of the lowest rates of total health care growth in the past 50 years,” the group said.

The statement cited reports that Medicare drug spending had been far less than initially projected, partly due to generics.

Report: 1.2M fewer uninsured in state

NEW YORK — About 1.2 million New Yorkers will get health insurance under the federal health reform approved this year by Congress.

About 1.4 million will remain uninsured, including 400,000 illegal immigrants, according to the report by the New York State Health Foundation. The report analyzes how health reform will affect New York and looks at the challenges of setting up health insurance exchanges and increasing primary care services to serve more people. The report also explores new payment methods the state could use to lower health care costs.

Copies of the report are available at http://www.nyshealthfoundation.org.

– Cathleen F. Crowley

The Health Care and Social Costs of the Uninsured in New York State

A Fiscal Policy Institute Report Prepared for BALCONY by

www.fiscalpolicy.org

December 2007

Click here for the report.

Nyack Nurses Ratify Contract

Agreement maintains comparable health insurance for RNs

NYACK, NY, July 30, 2010 – Registered nurses who are members of the New York State Nurses Association yesterday voted to ratify a new three-year contract with Nyack Hospital. The agreement maintains comparable health insurance for the registered nurses, a key point of contention in negotiations which had been going on since last fall.

As the nurses worked to negotiate a fair contract, they were mindful of strengthening an environment that supported quality care and ensured the best possible patient outcomes. One important goal was to make the hospital’s nurse retention and recruitment efforts more competitive, which was addressed by improvements in benefits including staff development and tuition reimbursement.

“We are pleased to have reached a satisfactory agreement and are moving forward to continue working with hospital management to provide the high quality care our community deserves,” said AnnaMarie Perkins, RN, president of the Nyack Hospital bargaining unit.

The contract, which is retroactive to Jan. 1, 2010 and runs through 2013, includes a 9.1 percent wage increase over the three years for the Nyack Hospital RNs, as well as maintaining a comparable health insurance benefit as the hospital changes health insurance providers.

“We provide health care to people every day, and understand how important good health insurance is,” Perkins said.

The New York State Nurses Association is the voice for nursing in the Empire State. With more than 36,000 members, it is the state’s largest professional association and union for registered nurses. It supports nurses and nursing practice through education, research, legislative advocacy, and collective bargaining.

Carthage Area Hospital Nurses Reach Tentative Agreement

CARTHAGE, July 29, 2010 – New York State Nurses Association members at Carthage Area Hospital reached a tentative agreement for a new contract on July 27, just four days before their current contract would expire.

The contract includes a wage increase for all Carthage RNs. Additionally, the Nurses Association persuaded hospital management to increase differential pay for nightshift RNs by 12.5 percent to remedy a 34 percent nightshift RN vacancy rate. Obstetric RNs also won the right to receive hourly specialty differential pay, compensation that was previously only offered to critical care unit and emergency department RNs.

RNs and hospital management will also develop and launch a mentoring program that offers workshops and in-service training to newly hired nurses.

“The nurses really pushed hard to keep their priorities on the table. During negotiations, both parties affirmed that patient care is our mutual goal,” said Annie Rutsky, labor relations representative, NYSNA. “This is an agreement that will help the hospital provide the high quality care that this community deserves.”

The New York State Nurses Association is the voice for nursing in the Empire State. With more than 36,000 members, it is the state’s largest professional association and union for registered nurses. It supports nurses and nursing practice through education, research, legislative advocacy, and collective bargaining.

Major Victories in Tobacco Control Take Effect This Week

Comprehensive Tobacco Control Policies Crucial to Saving Lives, Protecting Children and Reducing the Negative Toll of Tobacco Use on Communities

Washington, D.C. – July 1, 2010 – Across the country this week, several major smoke-free laws and cigarette tax increases take effect that will save lives, protect families and improve the health of communities across the country. These strong public health measures will help to reduce overall tobacco use and incidence rates of tobacco-related cancers.

On July 1, cigarette taxes will increase in New York, New Mexico, Utah, South Carolina and Hawaii – bringing the average state cigarette tax to $1.45 per pack nationally. Smoke-free laws will go into effect in Kansas on July 1 and Wisconsin on July 5 that will make all workplaces in those states, including bars and restaurants, 100 percent smoke-free.

“Lawmakers across the country are taking a stand against the scourge of tobacco use. Comprehensive state and local smoke-free laws, higher tobacco excise taxes and fully funded tobacco prevention and cessation programs are critical to reducing the negative toll of tobacco use on communities,” said John R. Seffrin, PhD, chief executive officer of the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network (ACS CAN), the advocacy affiliate of the American Cancer Society. “Only by tackling tobacco use through a comprehensive approach can we effectively overcome the country’s tobacco epidemic and reach our goal of a smoke-free nation.”

The Society and ACS CAN work in partnership with state policymakers across the country to ensure that tobacco use is addressed through proven methods including 1) raising the price of tobacco products, 2) implementing comprehensive smoke free policies and 3) fully funding and sustaining evidenced-based, statewide tobacco prevention and cessation programs.

Since 2002, 46 states, the District of Columbia and several U.S. territories have raised their cigarette tax in more than 100 separate instances, including 14 states and the District of Columbia in 2009 and six states in 2010.

As of July 1 the new cigarette taxes in New York, New Mexico, Utah, South Carolina and Hawaii will be: $4.35, $1.66, $1.70, $0.57 and $3.00 respectively. New York will be the new highest tax in the nation and also the first with a tobacco tax over $4. South Carolina’s historic increase came after a decade-long battle. Until now, the state had the lowest tobacco tax in the nation and had not passed an increase since 1977. Missouri now has the lowest tax in the nation at 17 cents.

Research has consistently shown that every 10 percent increase in the price of cigarettes reduces youth smoking by 7 percent and overall cigarette consumption by about 4 percent.

In New York, the new revenue will help fund health programs in the state – including money for tobacco cessation programs and for the state cancer research center in Buffalo. A portion of the revenue from the tax increase in New Mexico will be directed to Medicaid and numerous other health services. In Utah, the revenue will support the state’s general fund.

Kansas and Wisconsin will be the 21st and 22nd states to implement comprehensive smoke-free legislation that requires 100 percent smoke-free non-hospitality workplaces, bars and restaurants. They will be the 34th and 35th states, plus the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico, to require some combination of 100 percent smoke-free workplaces and/or restaurants and/or bars. Additionally, more than 3,000 municipalities have local laws in effect that restrict where smoking is permitted. Combined, this represents more than three-fourths of the U.S. population.

Secondhand smoke is a major health hazard, proven to cause lung cancer, heart disease and emphysema. With 4,000 chemicals and more than 60 carcinogens – including arsenic and polonium – secondhand smoke causes cancer, heart, and lung disease and kills nearly 50,000 nonsmoking Americans each year, including 3,000 deaths from lung cancer.

Smoke-free laws save lives. Strong smoke-free laws that include all workplaces, including restaurants and bars, are the only effective way to protect all workers and the public from the health hazards of secondhand smoke. Smoke-free workplaces and public places also make it easier for smokers to quit and discourage kids from picking up this deadly habit.

States with comprehensive tobacco control programs experience faster declines in cigarette sales, smoking prevalence, and lung cancer incidence and mortality than states that do not invest in these programs. The CDC recommends states spend $3.7 billion or more on tobacco control programs. Only nine states are funding at even half of the CDC’s recommend spending levels and North Dakota is the only state to approve funding control programs at the CDC prevention spending target.

“Despite major progress in passing strong tobacco control measures at the state and local levels, only 40 percent of the population is covered by comprehensive smoke-free laws and only one state currently meets the CDC’s recommended spending levels on tobacco control,” said Christopher W. Hansen, president of ACS CAN. “There is much more to be done and we encourage advocates and lawmakers to continue to work together to strengthen their state tobacco control policies.”

The use of tobacco products remains the nation’s number one cause of preventable death, killing more than 440,000 Americans and costing $96 billion in direct health care costs each year.

FOR MORE INFORMATION, CONTACT:
Nicole Bender
(202) 661-5773
Nicole.Bender@cancer.org

Steven Weiss
(202) 661-5711
Steve.Weiss@cancer.org

New Ground Zero Deal Gives Plaintiffs $712.5 Million!

By A. G. SULZBERGER and MIREYA NAVARRO

Lawyers for the city and some 10,000 rescue and cleanup workers at ground zero said Thursday that they had negotiated a new settlement that would give the workers more compensation for health damages and reduce the fees paid to their lawyers.

A federal judge rejected an earlier settlement in March as inadequate. After nearly three months of renegotiations, the city’s insurer, the WTC Captive Insurance Company, has agreed to increase its payout to plaintiffs to $712.5 million. The previous terms called for payouts of $575 million to $657.5 million.

The workers sued the city and its contractors six years ago over respiratory illnesses and other injuries they say they suffered at the World Trade Center site in the 9/11 recue and cleanup effort, arguing that they were not given protective equipment or adequate supervision.

On March 12, lawyers for the city and the plaintiffs reported that they had reached a settlement after arduous negotiations. But a week later, the judge overseeing the case, Alvin K. Hellerstein of United States District Court in Manhattan, startled both sides by spurning it.

He said the workers were getting too little, the terms were poorly understood by the plaintiffs, and the lawyers were receiving too big a cut. Under the new accord, the plaintiffs’ lawyers have agreed to reduce their fees to a maximum of 25 percent of the settlement amount, down from the 33.33 percent called for in agreements their clients had signed. As a result, the plaintiffs will get to keep an additional $50 million, their lawyers said.

Judge Hellerstein welcomed the new settlement in a hearing on Thursday morning. “This is a very good deal — I am very excited by this deal,” he said.

He acknowledged that his intervention in the class action settlement had been unusual but said that the gravity of the claims demanded it. “It just begs for judicial supervision, and I have exercised it, and I will continue to exercise it,” he said.

In March the city filed papers with the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit to challenge Judge Hellerstein’s authority to block the settlement. But at the same time, its lawyers have sought to accommodate him to salvage the agreement.

The new settlement must be approved by 95 percent of the plaintiffs by Sept. 30 to take effect. At the hearing on Thursday, the judge urged the workers to accept it. “It is time to end this lawsuit,” he said.

Once approved, he said, the payments could start flowing to the plaintiffs within weeks.

Kenneth R. Feinberg, the former special master of the federal compensation fund that paid awards to families of 9/11 victims in a separate process, said, “This settlement brings to an end one of the final chapters of the 9/11 tragedy.”

He said he would visit fire houses and conduct town hall meetings to explain the new settlement to the workers.

Paul Napoli, a lawyer representing thousands of the firefighters, said the new deal “can be described in three words: bigger and better.”

Judge Hellerstein scheduled another hearing for June 23 at which plaintiffs can pose questions and voice concerns about the settlement terms.

New York State Nurses Association condemns Governor Paterson’s budget extension bill

$384 million in healthcare cuts will leave New Yorkers vulnerable

Today the New York State Nurses Association condemned Governor Paterson’s latest budget extension bill that calls for $384 million in cuts to the state’s healthcare system.

“The Governor is employing a desperate tactic in order to force the hand of state government. Unfortunately, this game of political chicken calls for unsustainable cuts to health care that will endanger the lives of New York’s citizens,” said Tina Gerardi, MS, RN, CAE, Nurses Association CEO.

The Governor’s proposal also reduces reimbursements to hospitals for charity care by $72 million and includes nearly $13 million in cuts to public health programs.

“No one is questioning the need to keep our government running, but the budget cannot be balanced on the backs of New York’s most vulnerable – the ill and indigent. If we don’t stand up for this population, who will?” said Gerardi.

Community Healthcare Network President/CEO Catherine M. Abate Named to NYC Commission on HIV/AIDS

Commission made up of individuals with diverse backgrounds who have more than a decade of experience in field

New York, NY- Community Healthcare Network (CHN) President/CEO Catherine M. Abate has been named to the New York City Commission on HIV/AIDS, a body of key policy advisors on HIV/AIDS issues.

“I’m honored to have been asked to be part of this important commission,” said Catherine M. Abate, CHN president/CEO. “Community Healthcare Network has been a leader in the fight to end the spread of HIV and I look forward to sharing what we’ve learned with the Commission.”

Formed in 2003, the Commission includes individuals from diverse backgrounds, including executive directors of AIDS service organizations, HIV prevention researchers, and persons who are living with HIV/AIDS. Each member has more than a decade of experience in the field of HIV/AIDS.

Abate has served as President/CEO of CHN since 1999, her latest endeavor in a career that spans several decades of public service. A former New York State Senator in Manhattan and Commissioner of the New York City Department of Correction, Abate began her professional life as an attorney at the Legal Aid Society in New York City. She is a frequent lecturer on health care and serves on a number of boards including New York-Presbyterian Community Health Plan, Inc and its HIV SNP, Medicaid Matters New York – Steering Committee, Community Health Care Association of New York State, and Alliance for Women’s Health.

CHN is one of New York City’s premier community providers for medical and social services for those who are HIV-positive, as well as those who are at risk of contracting HIV. CHN has been involved in planning, developing, and providing HIV/AIDS services since HIV first appeared in New York City and led the way as the first agency in the U.S. to incorporate HIV services, such as counseling and testing, into family planning services.