Coverage Resource Center

Too many New Yorkers go without health insurance: 900,000 uninsured New Yorkers are eligible for public health insurance coverage; another 1.3 million are uninsured but do not qualify for public coverage and most likely cannot afford private insurance. The reasons for uninsurance are as varied as the State’s population. Some people do not know about the availability of insurance programs. Others do not know they are eligible. Still other individuals are reluctant to accept public benefits, or have difficulty completing the paperwork and enrollment process. For everyone, the cost of insurance is high and rising.

When people are uninsured they do not seek preventive care that might help them avoid medical problems or keep a small health problem from becoming a large one. Aware that they cannot afford to pay for care out-of-pocket, they do not get proper and timely health care. By the time they finally seek help, the care they receive is more complicated, costly, and often less effective. Health care providers, whether emergency departments or community clinics, bear the burden of this delay and the higher unreimbursed costs of delivering care.

Expanding health insurance coverage for New Yorkers is vital to individual health, community health, and the health care system itself. Whether you are a health care service provider, researcher, State policymaker, or consumer--especially one of the 2.4 million New Yorkers without health coverage--this NYSHealth online resource provides helpful, reliable information, including links to organizations that are working to expand health insurance coverage in New York.

Click on the topics below for more information.

• Facts and Figures
• Important Publications
• Organizations Working to Improve Health Insurance Coverage in New York
• Public and Private Insurance Initiatives

Features

NYSHealth Releases Report Analyzing Health Coverage for Immigrants

NYSHealth-produced report, Connecting Immigrants to Commercial Health Coverage: A Survey of Existing and Potential Strategies finds "community credibility" is key to reaching immigrant consumers. Please click here to read more.

Health Insurance Reform More Urgent than Ever

Click here to read President and CEO James R. Knickman's latest President's Corner.

NYSHealth Hosts June Seminar: “Reforming Medical Malpractice: A Conversation with Michelle Mello”

On June 9, 2009, the Foundation hosted Dr. Michelle Mello, a national expert on medical malpractice and Professor of Law and Public Health at the Harvard School of Public Health, to discuss reform options and lessons learned from the success and failure of medical malpractice reform in other states. Please click here to read more.

This Columbia University report, funded by NYSHealth, models five plans to reduce the number of uninsured in New York State. The analysis indicates that the plans differ vastly in both their potential impact on the problem and costs. Please click here to read more.

Merging the Markets: Combining New York's Individual and Small-Group Markets in Common Risk Pools

This United Hospital Fund Report, funded by NYSHealth, models the effects of merging three segments of New York State’s commercial health insurance market: Direct Pay, Healthy New York, and Small Group. Please click here to read more.

In the News

"Insured, but Bankrupted by Health Crises." New York Times, June 30, 2009

"Revolving-Door Patients Illustrate Health System Flaws" Kaiser Health News & The Washington Post, June 30, 2009

"Secretary Sebelius Releases New State by State Reports Highlighting Urgent Need for Health Reform" HHS Press Office, June 26, 2009

"Can Health Care Come With a Warranty?" New York Times, June 25, 2009

"The Unhealthy Accounting of Uninsured Americans." Wall Street Journal, June 24, 2009

"Health Groups Detail Plans to Reduce Costs." Wall Street Journal, June 02, 2009