Health Care in New York: Is the Affordable Care Act Still Affordable?

• In Event: Health Policy: Challenges and New Directions

Abstract

New York State was one of the more enthusiastic adopters of the Affordable Care Act. Ignoring opposition from the Republicans who controlled the State Senate, Governor Andrew Cuomo established the "New York State of Health," the Health Insurance Exchange (now known as the Health Insurance Marketplace), to enroll uninsured New Yorkers in a number of private health insurance plans, as well as the state's Medicaid program. New York's participation in the program was an expansion of the state government's longstanding commitment to expanding health care access. The state has attempted to expand access while containing costs.
The paper will examine the state's efforts to expand health care access to New Yorkers in the years prior to the adoption of ACA; the implementation of the ACA in New York, and how the program has expanded access to health care. It will also review the ongoing efforts to contain increases in health care spending by state state.
These two seemingly contradictory goals: expanding access while containing costs, continue to impact health care policy in New York. This leads to the question: can the state government continue to expand access while limiting increases in expenditures.

Author

• Jeffrey F. Kraus, Wagner College