| Steam Spitzer's plan has a chance to succeed where others (most recently, Gov. Pataki) have failed in their attempts to reform Medicaid in New York, because he has essentially divided traditional anti-reform allies.
How has he done this? First of all, he has called on capping Medicaid reimbursement increases for Hospitals and providers. This has triggered a predicted push-back from Unions (SEIU 1199) and the Hospitals (New York Hospital Association), who see these caps as potentially threatening to Hospital services and jobs. Spitzer isn't buying it (from the editorial):
It's clear that these hospitals aren't trying to protect patients. They're trying to protect the pipeline of billions in public money that has flowed to them for years without any accountability.
These special interests have gotten their way in Albany in the past. They have always claimed the best thing for patients was more taxpayer subsidies for well-off hospitals.
And what have we gotten in return? A broken health-care system with ever-higher spending, ever-higher taxes, ever-higher numbers of uninsured and some of the worst health in the nation.
Normally, the unions and hospitals would be joined by patients' rights advocates, but the Gov. has brought them over with a proposed increase in patient benefits and an increase in Medicaid reimbursements to Hospitals that serve a high volume of Medicaid patients (above 35% of total patients served). He also wants to take the saved money and provide health care to every child in New York. Again, here's the Governor:
These proposals would be funded in part by holding down the growth in the bloated subsidies the state now provides to hospitals with relatively few Medicaid patients.
This "divide and conquer" strategy for Medicaid reform has a better chance to succeed where others have failed...and, like all his fights in Albany so far, he has personally been out front in the battle. |
Not wanting his Medicaid Budget message to be misunderstood, the governor decided to speak for himself in a 
