Cara Matthews writes on Lohud.com - “Gov. Andrew Cuomo submitted legislation Monday that would set up a health-care exchange to comply with the federal Affordable Care Act.

Like Senate Republicans’ bill, which came out last week, the governor’s bill would set up a public authority to administer the exchange, or marketplace. But Cuomo’s legislation would authorize the exchange to negotiate benefits on behalf of consumers and small businesses, and the Senate bill would not.

Small businesses and individuals that don’t have health insurance will purchase benefits through the exchange, which has to be operating on or before Jan. 1, 2014. They will be able to look for plans online or call a toll-free number. The federal government will determine by Jan. 1, 2013, if a state is qualified to run an exchange.

Cuomo said his bill would set up a “centralized, customer-service oriented marketplace” where people and small groups will be able to choose from an array of qualified health plans and obtain decisions on eligibility and subsidies. There are roughly 2.7 million uninsured New Yorkers.”

Judith Messina writes in Crain’s New York Business (subscription-based) - “In the three years that Elizabeth Crowell has offered health insurance to employees at her Brooklyn antiques shops, she’s weathered two rate hikes, of 20% and 25%, on her Empire Blue Cross plan. She is bracing for renewal in November, when she will learn whether she’s in for another steep increase in 2012.

“It’s the only cost in my business that’s unmanageable,” said Ms. Crowell. Last year, she spent $25,500 on coverage for her four-person family and the two full-time employees at her two shops, both called Sterling Place…

New York is determining how to structure its exchange. Key matters and questions include naming or creating a governing body to supervise the exchange, and whether that body will vet offerings; if there will be a single exchange for the whole state or several regional ones; and if the small business and individual markets should be merged.
Many New Yorkers support the idea of an exchange but differ on some major points.

A large number of consumer groups, for example, want the exchange to be an active purchaser, negotiating and determining who can sell what. Small businesses, on the other hand, want flexibility and the widest possible choice, and largely oppose the active-purchaser role.

“We think it will limit choice and competition,” says Margaret Moree, director of federal affairs for the Business Council of New York State.

The only decision New York must make now concerns the governing body. It lags other states, 20 of which have enacted legislation or have it in the works. The choice must be made and approved by the Legislature by June 20, the end of its session, in order for New York to be eligible for millions in federal grants to help establish the marketplace.”

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“Senate Health Committee Chairman Kemp Hannon, R-Nassau County, and Senate Insurance Committee Chairman James Seward, R-Milford, Otsego County, announced this morning that they have introduced legislation that would set up New York’s health-insurance exchange, a requirement under the federal Affordable Care Act.” writes Cara Matthews on LoHud.com.

“The legislation is a first step in advancing a health insurance exchange that will ensure affordable and accessible coverage that meets the unique insurance needs of all New Yorkers,” Seward said in a statement. “The bill establishes a solid foundation, adhering to all of the necessary requirements to receive federal funding, as we continue to craft the final details of a state exchange.”

Each state has to set up an exchange, or marketplace, for small employers and individuals to buy health insurance by Jan. 1, 2014. New York will be eligible for tens of millions of dollars in federal grants if it adopts a bill before the end of the legislative session June 20. Drafts of the Senate legislation and Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s bill have been circulating. The governor’s administration has not officially submitted its proposal.

The Legislature and governor should have the authority to make all “significant” policy decisions, not the exchange, Heather Briccetti, acting president and CEO of council, said in a statement. “It would be a mistake to act too quickly and lock the state into an exchange structure and process that will not work for small businesses moving forward. That is why The Business Council urges the Governor and legislature to do no harm in adopting exchange legislation,” she said.”

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“Medical malpractice premiums for physicians in different regions of the state can vary as much as five times the amount paid between regions and the difference can exceed $100,000 for some specialties, according to an analysis issued today by Excellus BlueCross BlueShield.” write Leva Doyle in the Ithaca Journal.

“”Medical malpractice rates for upstate New York physicians are considerably less than those in downstate regions and are similar to the amounts paid by physicians in states that report the lowest premium rates in the country,” said Arthur Vercillo, M.D., regional president, Excellus BlueCross BlueShield.”

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An article in the Daily News, authored by Ken Lovett, discusses soaring premium rates:

“For city residents forced to buy their own health insurance, President Obama’s sweeping health care law can’t take effect soon enough.

Premium rates for personally funded HMOs soared last year as the number of insurers competing for business has dropped dramatically since 2004, the Daily News has learned.

One company, GHI HMO Select, is now charging individuals $3,319 a month. And GHI family coverage is a jaw-dropping $8,463 per month, the state Insurance Department said. Those rates are nearly 8% higher than last year’s.”

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In Crain’s New York, Vincent Ashton discusses the health insurance exchange:

“The failures of the state’s individual, sole proprietor and small group markets have produced competing recommendations, many of which address the needs of one group at the expense of another. Because there has been so little success in these three markets nationwide, recommendations are often based upon untested theory or undocumented assumptions.”

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Kevin Sack writes in the New York Times - “A five-week flurry of federal appellate hearings on the constitutionality of the Obama health care law kicks off Tuesday in Richmond, Va., beginning the second round of a race to the Supreme Court among a multitude of litigants eager to strike down the president’s signature domestic achievement.

Tuesday’s hearing, the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit will consider a pair of contradictory rulings sent up from the lower courts. In one case, filed by Virginia’s attorney general, a federal district judge in Richmond ruled late last year that Congress had exceeded its authority by requiring most Americans to obtain health insurance.”

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Kings County District Attorney Charles Hynes and the Fraud Costs NY coalition today joined forces with Senator James Seward, Senator Martin Golden and Assemblyman Joseph Morelle to urge the State Legislature to reform New York’s no-fault auto
insurance laws.

New Yorkers now pay the fourth highest premiums in the nation for auto insurance, due in large part to an outdated system that is rife with fraud and abuse. In 2010, for the second consecutive year, auto accident fraud cost New Yorkers more than $204 million - a cost that amounts to a ‘Fraud Tax’ which is absorbed by all drivers in the form of higher insurance premiums.

“The ‘fraud industry’ has ballooned into a multi-million dollar a year criminal enterprise. Auto accident fraud not only costs New Yorkers hundreds of millions of dollars annually, but it also poses a considerable threat to public safety,” said District Attorney Hynes. “Time and again, innocent bystanders are injured or killed as a result of staged auto accidents. This is simply unacceptable. We need real reforms that will finally stop the ‘fraud tax’ and allow law enforcement to prosecute these criminals to the fullest extent of the law and keep our streets safe.”

New York State is experiencing an insurance fraud crisis. In fact, by year-end, fraud is expected to have cost New York drivers nearly $1 billion since 2005. Last month, Senator Seward and Assemblyman Morelle introduced legislation that would reduce fraud and abuse and help fix New York’s broken no-fault system.

“New York’s no-fault auto insurance system is broken and needs to be fixed now,” said Senator Seward, Chair of the Senate’s Insurance Committee. “Our bill (S-2186/A-6286) would bring fundamental change by cracking down on criminals who fleece the system for their own personal gain and leave New Yorkers to foot the bill by way of a ‘fraud tax.’ These are tough times for New York, but this is one tax we can all agree must get cut.”

Assemblyman Morelle, Chair of the Assembly’s Insurance Committee, said, “No-fault fraud is costing New Yorkers hundreds of millions of dollars at a time when they’re already paying the highest property taxes in the nation and facing economic uncertainty on so many levels. We have an opportunity to reform the no-fault system, punish those who abuse it, and in the process provide relief for our hard-working families. I urge all my colleagues to support this critical legislation.”

To read more click here.

For More Information Contact: Austin Finan (212) 681-1380

Barbara Pinckney writes in the Business Review (subscription-based) - “It brought $64,000 to Albany International Corp., $400,000 to KeyCorp and millions to other area employers.

But now the clock is ticking on the Early Retiree Reimbursement Program.
“The program is not even a year old and it’s maxed out,” said Maggie Moree, director of federal affairs for the Business Council of New York State.

The ERRP was established under the federal health care reform act to help employers provide coverage for workers who retired after age 55 but before they were old enough for Medicare.”

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Cara Matthews writes on pressconnects.com - “Two years and eight months may seem like a long time, but state officials will have to work diligently in order to make the January 2014 deadline to set up the health-insurance exchange required under federal law, advocates said Friday.

Under the health care reform law passed by Congress and signed by the president, Americans have to obtain health insurance by Jan. 1, 2014 or face a fine. Each state has to set up an exchange, essentially a marketplace where individuals and small businesses will go to choose a plan.

Some advocates said it’s critical for lawmakers to pass legislation by the end of the session in June.”

To read more click here.