NY Gov Cuomo Unveils New Healthcare Access Program - Essay Sample

Introduction

The Governor of New York, Andrew M. Cuomo unveiled his healthcare access program that provides for among others financial assistance and increased transparency in healthcare costs. The unveiling of the 14th Proposal in his 2020 State of the State agenda is a feasible undertaking. I agree with the proposed changes owing to its relevance in streamlining access problems facing a high number of New Yorkers. According to the Governor, the decision is critical due to the rising costs of healthcare procedures and lack of information for consumers. The actualization of the proposal is meant to reduce and enable access to information for consumers to compare prices of healthcare costs across various hospitals. The proposal also calls for the creation of a consumer-friendly website through a collaboration between the Department of Health and the Department of Financial Services.

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According to the Governor, the creation of a consumer-friendly website where customers can get relevant information regarding the cost of healthcare procedures is a major healthcare milestone in the state. The website will also feature educational resources thus eradicating access challenges facing a majority of consumers whenever they are bombarded with healthcare through the provision of financial assistance options. The proposal also aims at helping consumers know and understand their rights regarding their healthcare needs. Healthcare costs in the United States pose challenges to consumers and Cuomo's proposal aims at closing the gap between medical facilities and consumers. As noted during the unveiling, the proposal aims at giving "New Yorkers the facts they need to make informed decisions about the cost and quality of healthcare procedures-helping increase competition in the marketplace and driving down prices" (GovernorsPressOffice, 2019).

In my opinion, such a proposal is well-founded since the major problem towards making informed decisions on their healthcare needs dwells on the lack of information. By providing consumers with the right information on their healthcare needs is an important shift towards enhancing transparency in the healthcare sector. This is an important milestone towards empowering consumers thus helping them to make informed decisions specific to their needs. The creation of a consumer-friendly website will also be important since the current information avenues are scattered across various platforms. The nature of the information available is therefore ineffective and makes it hard for consumers to find comprehensive and reliable access to all the information in one place. By enabling access to all the information such as through comprehensive guides on affordability, medical procedure costs and comparisons for quality, volume and cost data enhances their understanding before making their decisions.

As a means towards achieving equitable and transparent healthcare marketplace, the proposal aims at arming consumers with the right information. The website will also enable consumers to gain knowledge on an array of subjects such as their rights on the medical bills, hospital complaints, provider/practitioner complaints, and healthcare complaints. In my opinion, the Governor's proposal is a feasible undertaking since it will enhance accountability and transparency which will help reduce cases of neglect or other medical malpractices. However, the implementation of the proposal drew mixed reactions from the healthcare personnel and experts citing among other reasons the likelihood of changes in medical costs. As noted by Howard, (2020), the proposal should factor such cost changes through setting pricing ranges for medical procedures since healthcare providers often "make decisions mid-procedure that may change the costs that the patients were expecting". I agree with these sentiments since healthcare providers are mandated to provide the best care which might include other associated costs for the wellbeing of the patients/consumers. Regardless, the proposal by the Governor is feasible and contributes to a higher level of empowerment towards the consumers.

References

GovernorsPressOffice. (2019, December 30). Governor Cuomo Unveils 14th Proposal of 2020 State of the State: Increasing Transparency in Healthcare Costs. Governor Andrew M. Cuomo. https://www.governor.ny.gov/news/governor-cuomo-unveils-14th-proposal-2020-state-state-increasing-transparency-healthcare-costs

Lecci, A. W. (2020, February 18). New York State Price Transparency Proposal May Not Work as Intended. HealthLeaders Media. https://www.healthleadersmedia.com/finance/new-york-state-price-transparency-proposal-may-not-work-intended