Legislative and Health Policy Update

As we enter the dog days of August, both the state and federal legislative branches are in recess or adjourned. Nonetheless, it was a busy spring with a flurry of activity in Albany as the end of session approached. In Albany , the legislature claimed an on-time budget for the second year in a row, only to have massive portions of the document (including nearly all of the restorations to the healthcare system) vetoed by Governor Pataki. The governor’s vetoes threw the state capital into a frenzy of activity, including a threatened lawsuit by the legislature and promises from the executive chamber that they would simply ignore veto overrides. Thus the stage was set for the end-of-session “all-nighters” for which Albany is famous. In the end, as dawn broke on July 1 st, most of the health system cuts imposed by the governor were, in fact, restored through three-way negotiations and passage of multiple individual bills. Among those items that NYSARH provided testimony and advocated for funding or adoption, and were restored are: increase in hospital emergency room rates; nursing home rebasing; Medicaid cuts to hospitals; and initial agreement on Timothy’s Law (health insurance parity between physical and mental health benefits).

On the federal level, programs for which your NYSARH delegation traveled to Washington to advocate for back in March are making their way through the appropriations process. Both the House and Senate have completed appropriations committee work on the Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and related agencies’ spending bills. For the most part, the news for the Rural Heath Safety Net programs is good, but certainly not great. Most programs are being reported out at level funding. Of particular interest to New York State’s rural communities, the following programs with attendant proposed funding levels for the current FY 2006 include: Rural Outreach & Network Grant Program $38.9 million; State Officers of Rural Health $8.1 million; Rural Hospital Flex Grants $39.2 million; Rural EMS $0; Telehealth $6.8 million; AHEC’s $28.7 million; and Community Health Centers $1,782.00.

Final vote on these federal appropriations is not expected before the November mid-term elections, and depending on their outcome, last-minute negotiations in Washington may make for a very hot holiday season…stay tuned.