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FOR
IMMEDIATE RELEASE April 2, 2002 PR-069-02 www.nyc.gov |
MAYOR MICHAEL R. BLOOMBERG SIGNS BILL PROMOTING
AWARENESS OF PUBLIC HEALTH INSURANCE
Remarks by Mayor Bloomberg
at a Public Hearing on Local Laws
The first bill before me today is Introductory Number 13-A, sponsored
by Council Members Moskowitz, Miller, Quinn, and eleven of their colleagues.
Intro. 13-A seeks to increase access to public health
insurance and enroll children in low-cost or free health insurance
plans. This bill will require the Department of Public Health to produce
a pamphlet describing public health insurance program options available
to New York City residents. The pamphlet will be published annually
by the Department of Public Health and will be made available to the
public in multiple languages. This bill requires participating City
agencies, such as the Administration
for Children Services and the Board of Education, to implement
and administer a program for the distribution of these pamphlets to
the public, including through the Internet.
Despite the availability of public health insurance programs, recent estimates suggest that close to one million low-income New Yorkers eligible to be insured are uninsured. These uninsured New Yorkers are often forced to turn to emergency rooms in City public hospitals for their basic medical needs, which results in higher costs for those services provided. These costs are inevitably absorbed by the City's taxpayers.
The publication and distribution of this pamphlet will help inform uninsured New Yorkers that they may be eligible for public health insurance and will facilitate their access to such coverage. This legislation is an effort to preserve the health and well being of all New Yorkers by ensuring that those New Yorkers who are eligible to receive public health insurance coverage, receive the coverage they deserve.
I will now turn to the bill's sponsor and to any other elected officials wishing to speak on this matter.
I will now turn to the general audience.
There being no one else wishing to speak and for the reasons previously
stated, I will now sign the bill.
www.nyc.gov
Contact: | Ed
Skyler / Jerry Russo (212) 788-2958 |