Webinar: How Federal Budget Cuts Could Impact New York’s Public Insurance Programs

On May 12th, NYHealth hosted a webinar on how federal budget cuts could impact New York's Public Insurance Programs. Insurance through Medicaid, the Essential Plan, Child Health Plus, and Affordable Care Act (ACA) plans provide coverage to millions of New Yorkers. More than 9.5 million New Yorkers are enrolled in public health insurance, including nearly 8 million in Medicaid; 1.5 million in the Essential Plan; and 250,000 in ACA plans. Medicaid, in particular, is a core vehicle for coverage, jointly funded by states and the federal government. Enrollment in the program rose to historically high levels during the COVID-19 pandemic; New York State has undertaken a massive effort to preserve those gains and is also implementing new State policies to expand coverage to certain populations.

At the same time, the federal administration and Congress have proposed and are considering significant Medicaid cuts, including through the federal budget reconciliation process. Funding cuts would threaten New York’s robust public insurance infrastructure and coverage rates across communities. New York State partners from across sectors have mobilized quickly to protect and preserve coverage in New York.

Speakers were:

Elisabeth Benjamin, Vice President, Health Initiatives, Community Service Society of New York
Lara Kassel, Coalition Coordinator, Medicaid Matters New York
Alice Lam, Managing Director, Manatt Health Strategies
Avital Havusha, Vice President of Programs, NYHealth (moderator)