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Budget, Education & City Services
NY State Medicaid Budget Cuts
WHEREAS, The Medicaid program currently provides healthcare to the neediest members of our community including working adults, children, seniors, the disabled and mentally ill; and
WHEREAS, The $1.13 Billion in cuts to the Medicaid program in the proposed 2005/6 State budget would most likely increase the number of uninsured in our community, decrease access to long term care services for our elderly and disabled, unduly restrict access to needed drug therapy, and eliminate some so-called "optional" services; and
WHEREAS, These cuts would have a long term impact to New York City by reducing funding to important health facilities and providers in the city and the Community Board Five area, causing layoffs for healthcare workers; and
WHEREAS, These cuts significantly hurt hospitals and other health care institutions that are already in a financial crisis; and
WHEREAS, These cuts would impact on the quality of care all New Yorkers receive and cause those denied coverage to seek treatment for routine illnesses in emergency rooms instead of at primary care providers; and
WHEREAS, Community Board Five recognizes the financial strain placed upon both state and localities by increasing Medicaid costs; and
WHEREAS, The budget proposed by the Governor conditions the State assuming an increasing share of Medicaid costs on legislative acceptance of the $1.13 billion in cuts; and
WHEREAS, There are other alternatives to reduce city and state Medicaid expenditures, such as making health and LTC insurance more affordable, re-importing drugs, consolidating New York's pharmaceutical purchases, and revising the federal funding formula; therefore be it
RESOLVED, Community Board Five urges the Governor and legislature:
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to reduce to the greatest extent possible the proposed Medicaid cuts and to consider other options to control Medicaid spending;
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to ensure that any Medicaid cutbacks do not disproportionately impact one sector of the population; and,
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in establishing a Medicaid drug formulary, to provide a consumer friendly appeal process and give final authority over a patient's medication to the prescribing physician; and
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to de-link decisions on services and eligibility from decisions on fiscal relief to localities; and
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to advocate aggressively for a revision of the federal funding formula that would reduce the burden on states like New York that are disadvantaged by the current formula; and
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to establish a state commission of health policy experts charged with examining the Medicaid program and developing recommendations for reforming it to provide comprehensive medically appropriate health services to the state's medically needy in the most efficient and cost-effective manner.