Meet our 2025 
Single Payer Champions!

Click here to get your tickets today to join us on Monday, June 23!

We are thrilled to announce the first honoree of our 2025 Benefit Celebrating Single Payer Champions; Steve Auerbach, MD, MPH, FAAP!

Dr. Steve Auerbach was destined to be part of the health justice movement from birth, when his late physician father was moonlighting for none other than Dr. Quentin Young. Hence, Steve jokingly refers to himself as a “teal diaper baby”. Growing up his father told him that “We should have Medicare starting at age zero”.

Steve’s activism began at age 12, canvassing for McGovern for president. He was introduced to the intersection of social justice, politics and healthcare when he spent two consecutive college summer terms abroad studying comparative healthcare systems in the People’s Republic of China, Sweden, and the United Kingdom.

Committed to addressing health disparities, Steve completed dual MD and MPH degrees at Columbia University. During medical school, the New York Times published his letter arguing that “there are large gaps in the medical-care safety net. In practice, there is no right to healthcare in the US. What we offer is an out-of-control 3-tier system of private, public, and none.” And that the real issue was “whether access to those services will be ensured by society for all its members” noting that of the industrialized countries around the world, the U.S. was one of just two that didn’t, the other being apartheid-era South Africa. He recalls, with a mix of shock and pride, that he actually received letters with death threats from physicians claiming that he was a traitor to the medical profession. Alas, the letter still holds true.

After completing a pediatrics residency at UCLA, Steve started at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention as an Epidemic Intelligence Officer in Atlanta, and then as the national epidemiologist in Micronesia. He returned to New York City with the Health Resources and Services Administration working on quality improvement at community health centers and identifying communities with unmet healthcare needs. He was deployed at the WTC site on 9/11 and as a team leader in Louisiana after Katrina. After reaching the Public Health Service 30-year mandatory retirement in 2019, he worked with the Elizabeth Warren campaign, then as a volunteer with the NYC Department of Health during the early years of COVID. 

Steve has shown up for the fight against inequality with Occupy Wall Street, the Fight for 15, Black Lives Matter, OneFairWage, NoMore24, Invest in Our New York, Make the Road, and Jews for Racial and Economic Justice. He has been a leader in outreach for PNHP NY Metro, presenting at medical centers and organizing many of our monthly educational forums. He serves on the boards of PNHP NY Metro, NYS Chapter 3 Academy of Pediatrics, the New York State-wide AAP Advocacy and Policy Committee, and One Payer States.

He feels his greatest achievement has been “just continuing to be here through the years, showing up for any social, political and economic justice movement” wherever he can be useful. With the times being what they are, he is more active than ever, and he asks us all to redouble our fight for single payer, social and economic justice more broadly, and the immediate fight against both neoliberal and reactionary corporate autocracy. 

We are truly honored in recognizing Dr. Steve Auerbach’s lifelong commitment to the single payer and global social justice movements as we bestow upon him the 2025 PNHP NY Metro Health Justice Award.

Get your tickets today to join us on Monday, June 23rd, 6:00pm to 8:30pm at Judson Memorial Church in NYC & stay tuned for our additional 2025 Health Justice Award Honorees!

Union support is essential in the efforts to pass the New York Health Act. Lawmakers listen to labor leaders and public sector unions in particular hold a lot of political power. While many unions such as the NY State Nurses Association, 1199 SEIU, and UAW are strong advocates and supporters of the NY Health Act, our elected officials say they need to hear more. Union members must work from within their unions to bring more of them over to supporting the bill.

Below is a list of resources for rank & file union members.

Take Action

• Sign the Open Letter to Labor Leaders & Lawmakers to #PassNYHealth
• Contact Tool: Urge your NYS Senator & Assembly Member to #PassNYHealth - call, email or tweet

Flyers

• Labor Union Flyer (English)
• Labor Union Flyer (Spanish)
• Half-sheet & ink-friendly Labor Union Flyers for printing here

Fact Sheets

• Response to UFT Unity Caucus attack on the NY Health Act, May 2025
• Detailed Explainer of the NY Health Act Legislation Provision

General Info About the NY Health Act available here.

Cross-Union Labor Groups Organizing to #PassNYHealth

• CROC: Cross Union Retiree Organizing Committee
• Labor Activists For NY Health Google Group Listserv
• Rank+File4NYHealth - Linktree | Google Group Listserv | Instagram | Twitter | Facebook | Gmail

FAQ

Below is a list of FAQs about the New York Health Act. If your question isn't answered here, email us at [email protected]

What is the New York Health Act?

Answer

New York Health is legislation in New York State that would provide comprehensive, universal health coverage for everyone who lives or works full time in New York, replacing existing private insurance company coverage. You and your health care providers work to keep you healthy. New York Health pays the bill. This plan is similar to Medicare or the Canadian system — but far better because it provides comprehensive care, including dental, hearing & Long Term Care, and truly covers everyone.

Instead of having to worry about not qualifying for health insurance, enrollment and arbitrary waiting periods, getting health insurance through your job or spouse, or buying it on your own, with the New York Health Act all New Yorkers would automatically have their healthcare covered by a public statewide fund, regardless of age, employment, immigration status, disability, race, gender, or financial means. Everyone would have healthcare the way everyone is covered by our public fire department, libraries, and schools – public services provided without ever having to worry about a bill. 

How is the NY Health Act able to improve the response to a pandemic?

Answer

Across the world, universal healthcare systems that prioritized public health interventions have been better able to handle the COVID-19 pandemic.

In universal systems, no one lost their health insurance when they lost their job. Here in NYS, at least 300,000 people lost their health insurance in 2020. In the middle of a pandemic. 

The NY Health plan will guarantee New Yorkers access to high quality care no matter your employment, age, income, race, or immigration status. It even covers full-time workers who live outside of New York State. 

Doctors and nurses can spend time caring for patients, and not fighting health insurance companies to approve care. 

A more coordinated system will better be able to manage supply, staff, and vaccine distribution based on where resources are needed most. 

Most importantly, profit will not be the motivation for healthcare decisions. The system will instead prioritize high quality and equitable outcomes for people. 

More information on COVID and the NY Health Act can be found here.

How will we pay for the New York Health Act?

Answer

Many people assume expanding coverage will mean a more expensive system. But the reality is that there is so much waste, fraud, and profiteering in the current system, that moving to a universal, single-payer model actually costs less than the status quo for both the state and 90% of individuals. By conservative estimates from the RAND Corporation, savings compared to the current system is $11 billion. Leonard Rodberg, PhD's analysis of the RAND study is that they under-calculated and the New York Health Act will generate an annual net savings of $16.8 billion. The bottom line is that not only is it a moral imperative to guarantee everyone access to care as a right and public good, it is fiscally conservative. We simply cannot afford not to have a single-payer system. 

For a deeper dive into the cost and savings of the system to the state and individuals, click here for Leonard Rodberg, PhD's analysis.

Why do we need New York Health?

https://www.commonwealthfund.org/publications/issue-briefs/2023/jan/us-health-care-global-perspective-2022

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28655034

Answer

Every day, as many as three New Yorkers die needlessly due to lack of healthcare. It’s so common that it no longer makes the headlines. In the last ten years, an estimated 20,000 New Yorkers died unnecessarily due to lack of health insurance. Over 1 million New Yorkers lack health insurance, and millions more have plans that would bankrupt them when faced with a medical emergency.

If you’re lucky enough to have a decent health plan, chances are you have been forced to cover more of the cost every year, while having to fight denials and limitations. The fees charged by private insurers have risen by over 50% in the last five years throughout the state. New Yorkers deserve better. We should not have to plan our jobs and lives around how to pay for essential healthcare.

While New York leads the country in how much we spend on healthcare, and the U.S. nationally spends more than $3 trillion on healthcare every year, our healthcare outcomes are far behind other high-income countries in nearly every category. For example, maternal mortality is actually increasing in the U.S. despite every other comparable country making significant gains in reducing deaths related to pregnancy.

Financial barriers and lack of access to care are significant drivers in these shameful health outcomes. Each year, 1/3 of patients with insurance go without prescribed medicines or fail to get the medical attention needed because of high deductibles and co-pays.

The current system relies largely on private commercial health insurance, which spends exorbitant amounts of money on CEO salaries, advertising to healthy “customers” with expensive ads, and creating huge amounts of paperwork and administration. Health insurance companies in the U.S. spend up to 20% of each dollar on administration; Medicare, by comparison, spends 2 cents of each dollar. We throw away billions on commercial health insurance unrelated to direct patient care. 

Inequality is rapidly increasing, and your zip code can actually determine your life expectancy. The richest 1 percent of American men lives 15 years longer than the poorest 1 percent; 10 years longer for women.

The current system is designed to make profits—which it does very well—not provide healthcare.

Can universal health care really happen in NYS?

Answer

Yes, and we are closer than ever. The bill easily passed the NYS Assembly for four years in a row 2015-2018. We have a majority of the state Senate signed on as cosponsors of the bill but because of turnover in the 2024 election we still need a handful of Assembly members to sign on to again gain the majority in the Assembly. All of the current cosponsors are Democrats, but Republican support for the universal, public healthcare is growing. The Campaign for New York Health is trying to build a powerful grassroots movement to change what is politically possible in New York State. Join us!

Send a message to your Assembly Member, State Senator, and their leadership today!

How Would the New York Health Act Work?

Answer

It would provide comprehensive, universal health coverage for every New Yorker and would replace private insurance coverage. You and your health care providers work to keep you healthy. New York Health pays the bill. 

1. Freedom to choose your healthcare providers. There would be no network restrictions, and therefor no out-of-network penalties or fees.
2. Freedom from insurance company interference. Patients and their doctors – not insurance companies – would make health care decisions. Prior authorizations and routine denial of care would be a thing of the past.
3. Comprehensive coverage. All New Yorkers, regardless of immigration status or any other status, would be covered for all medically necessary services, including: primary, preventive, specialists, hospital, mental health, reproductive healthcare, dental, vision, hearing, gender affirming care, prescription drug, and medical supply costs – more comprehensive than any commercial or union-negotiated health plans.
4. Paid for fairly. Today, insurance companies set the same high premiums, deductibles, and co-pays, whether it’s for a CEO or a receptionist, and a big successful company actually pays less than a small new business.
   
   

What if I am on Medicaid?

Answer

Medicaid will be integrated into the NY Health Plan, so that every single person who currently receives Medicaid benefits will be covered by the universal health plan and guaranteed the same high quality healthcare as every other resident or full-time worker in NYS. The NY Health plan guarantees that you can go to the provider of your choice, which will significantly improve wait times for specialty care for those who currently receive Medicaid benefits. If you are on Medicaid, you will likely see an improvement in your access to timely care.

What if I am on Medicare?

Answer

Seniors on Medicare will benefit from expanded benefits from the NY Health plan, which will include vision, dental, hearing, and long-term care. 

Medicare recipients currently spend an average of $6,100 – or 22% of their income – on health care. The New York Health Act will eliminate all out-of-pocket costs, ending financial worries when seeking health care. New Yorkers will pay less in New York Health taxes than they are paying now to insurance companies and in out-of-pocket expenses, and they will get the health care they need when they need it.

Learn more about Medicare and the NY Health Act here.

Doesn’t the ACA fix health care?

Answer

The Affordable Care Act expanded healthcare to millions of people. But it left the private health insurance companies in charge. Many more health plans have narrow restricted provider networks, rising premiums, high deductibles and co-payments that shift a large part of the cost to the individual. They control which doctors or hospitals we can go to and what care they can provide. We pay for their high administrative costs and profits. Employers continue to shift more of the cost of coverage to their workers, or drop coverage entirely. 

What happens if Washington cuts Medicare and Medicaid and people lose their ACA coverage?

Answer

The only way New Yorkers can protect ourselves—the only way we can afford to fill the huge gaps that will be created by Washington—is by adopting our own highly-efficient form of health care financing with the New York Health Act.

Won’t New York Health be just like every other health plan, only bigger?

Answer

Not at all. By law, it will not limit who you can go to for care and will not dictate health care decisions. Financial barriers won’t limit your ability to get care when you need it. Because wealthy and well-connected New Yorkers will be in the same plan with the rest of us, you can be sure it will be a better plan—better for patients and for health care providers. 

Won’t this be a huge new tax increase?

Answer

No. We will actually save billions of dollars because we won’t be paying for insurance company administration or health care provider costs for dealing with them. Additional savings through State bargaining for reduced pharmaceutical and equipment prices. We won’t be paying regressive premiums, or any deductibles, co-pays, or out-of-network charges. Property taxes will go down because local governments won’t pay for Medicaid, and health care for their employees will be cheaper. New Yorkers will have more money in our pockets and better health care for our families, and the tax that pays for the plan will be based on ability to pay. 

Can I buy private insurance?

Answer

Private insurance that duplicates benefits offered under New York Health could not be offered to New York residents. That’s important to prevent a 2-tier system, so wealthy New Yorkers have a stake in maintaining the quality of New York Health. But private coverage could be sold for benefits that would be outside the NY Health program, like purely cosmetic surgery. 

Is long-term care covered?

Answer

Long-term care (e.g., home health care, nursing homes) will be covered by the New York Health Act as part of the comprehensive benefit package designed to meet the actual care needs of New York residents. This amendment to the program is the result of years of organizing by women, seniors, people with disabilities, family caregivers, home care workers, unions, undocumented people, and the uninsured who worked with supportive elected officials to include these necessary services as a key component of the benefit package of the proposed universal healthcare system. 

The RAND Corporation studied the New York Health Act, including long-term care services with an emphasis on home-based care, could be fully incorporated into the New York Health plan, and could result in savings by the tenth year, ending the current crisis that requires people to impoverish themselves to be eligible for long-term care services through Medicaid. 

What about retiree health benefits?

Answer

Most retirees will simply be covered by New York Health, plus Medicare. A plan will be developed to cover retirees who move out of state. 

What is single-payer healthcare?

Answer

“Single payer” is a simple and proven solution to the two intertwined crises in our current healthcare system: the skyrocketing costs and the fact that millions lack access to care. A single-payer system like New York Health provides everyone with guaranteed, comprehensive healthcare at a much lower cost by eliminating the middleman that currently stands between you and your doctor: the insurance companies.

Under New York Health, doctors and hospitals would be paid for their work by a single tax-supported fund, similar to Medicare, rather than wasting time and money dealing with hundreds of insurance bureaucracies as they do now in our “multi-payer” system. Instead of the multitude of plans currently available, each with different networks of providers and different services covered, every resident is automatically enrolled in the same comprehensive plan.

In addition, New York Health removes all financial barriers to care. The system is funded through progressive taxation, which means you only pay a percentage of your income based on what you can afford, unlike the skyrocketing fees charged by private insurers. NYH would also eliminate all co-pays and deductibles. Finally, New Yorkers would no longer have to worry about finding “in-network” doctors or being stuck with a bill for healthcare due to an insurance denial.

What services are covered under New York Health?

Answer

New York Health will fully cover all medically necessary services comprehensive outpatient and inpatient medical care, primary and preventive care, prescription drugs, laboratory tests, mental health, reproductive health, rehabilitation, dental, vision, hearing, and medical supply costs. All New Yorkers would gain access to all benefits required by current state insurance law or provided by the state public employee package, Family Health Plus, Child Health Plus, Medicare, or Medicaid, as well as others added by the plan. 

Who would be covered under New York Health?

Answer

New York Health covers anyone who works full-time or lives in New York. Coverage is available regardless of health, financial or employment status for New Yorkers. Coverage follows you if you travel, retire, or lose your job.

We provide fire and police protection for everyone – why shouldn’t we do that for healthcare? With New York Health, no one would be denied care because of pre-existing conditions and no insurance company clerks would tell your doctor how to practice medicine.

Won’t it cost more to cover everyone?

Answer

No. Though it seems hard to believe, it’s much cheaper to cover everyone. You can find a recent economic analysis of the NY Health Act here. In fact, our government already spends MORE per person on healthcare just for the elderly and poor under Medicare and Medicaid than the Canadian government spends to provide healthcare for every citizen throughout their entire life. Why? There are many reasons. Right now our government shoulders the burden of paying for those whose care is most costly — the elderly and the needy — while private health insurers reap billions in profits by insuring those who need care the least — those healthy enough to work. This makes no sense.

Rather, as proven in every country with universal healthcare, when everyone is in the same public insurance pool, our money gets used more efficiently. More of our money goes to providing actual healthcare instead of being wasted on insurance companies’ marketing, claims denial departments, shareholder profits, or bloated CEO salaries.

New York Health would also bring costs down by reducing doctors’ expenses. Doctors spend less when they don’t have to pay for extra staff to manage all the intricate billing that comes with private insurers. For example, Duke University’s 900 bed hospital employs 900 medical billers to deal with all the insurance company paperwork. The cost of employing huge departments to handle all this red tape gets passed on to you, making everything more expensive. By contrast, Toronto General hospital has only 3 medical billers on staff. Why? Because a single payer system is more efficient and therefore cheaper.

Finally, New York Health would save money by giving people more access to care in a timely way before conditions worsen and become more costly to treat in the emergency room. Even prescription drugs would cost less, since the state would negotiate bulk prices. 

How does New York Health reduce costs?

Answer

New York Health reduces costs by cutting waste, not by denying care to patients. As proven in other countries, providing universal coverage is actually much cheaper since you aren’t paying for insurance companies’ marketing, claims denial departments, shareholder profits, or bloated CEO salaries. Also, when people have more access to care, they get treatments earlier before conditions worsen and become more costly. Even prescription medicine costs less, since the government could negotiate bulk prices.

In addition, doctors charge less when they don’t have to pay for extra staff to manage all the intricate billing that comes with private insurers. The cost of employing huge departments to handle all this red tape gets passed on to you, making everything more expensive. 

In fact, our government already spends MORE per person on healthcare just for the elderly and poor under Medicare and Medicaid than the Canadian government spends to provide healthcare for every citizen. 

NYHA controls costs through:

• Simplifying Paperwork: getting rid of the vast private insurance bureaucracy devoted to billing, coding, denying care, and reimbursing the same procedure at different rates
• Reducing Wasteful Spending: your money won’t be diverted towards marketing, shareholder profits, or bloated CEO salaries.
• An Ounce of Prevention: increasing access to preventive services and early intervention for everyone to avoid costly emergency room and hospitalization expenses.
• Bulk Purchasing: buying drugs and medical supplies at lower, negotiated prices
• A Bigger Pool: putting all New Yorkers in the same plan decreases costs since most people are healthy most of the time, offsetting the cost of providing care
• Providing Care Where It’s Needed: hospitals and surgical centers can be located where they are needed, ambulances can go to the closest hospital, etc.
• Simplifying Payments: annual budgets for health care facilities, rather than itemized reimbursements.
  
  

What about people who work for insurance companies?

Answer

Reducing our current bloated insurance bureaucracy will inevitably lead to some job loss. However, the adoption of a single-payer system is expected to lead to the creation of many new jobs in other industries throughout the state. Once employers are freed from the burden of buying private insurance for their workers, they will have much more money to invest in their business and hire more workers.

By the same logic, single payer will also make it much easier for freelancers and entrepreneurs to start and expand their businesses. Finally, with a single-payer plan, unemployed New Yorkers will no longer have to worry about how to pay for healthcare as they will be automatically covered by the statewide plan regardless of work status (even those who worked for health insurers).

For those who currently work for private insurance companies, or in the billing department for providers, there is funding in the bill to support their transition to new employment. Some will transition to work in the new system, and others may take on roles for care coordination or healthcare delivery. The economic impact study performed in 2015 estimated that over 70% of the displaced workers will have new jobs within six months. By the end of the second year, over 99% of the displaced workers will have found new employment. While this may present individual challenges, advocates prioritize a just transition to meaningful and well-compensated work in the new system.

For more information on a just transition for workers, see our fact sheet here.

Will this lead to huge waiting lines for care?

Answer

American health insurance companies have a long history of trying to scare Americans away from universal healthcare by claiming that we’ll be stuck with huge waiting lines. As evidence, they usually reference Canada, which has a very popular single-payer system that covers everyone, while spending only about half as much as the U.S.

First, it’s important to clarify that, as in Canada, there are NO waiting lists for emergency procedures. It’s also important to bear in mind that waiting times are a part of every healthcare system. Although patients in some parts of Canada have reported longer wait times for certain non-emergency procedures, it seems to vary widely by province. In many parts of Canada, the waiting times are similar to those in the United States… assuming you have insurance. Overall, the waiting time issue in Canada is much smaller than portrayed by American health insurance companies.

The New York Health Act will remove many of the sources of long wait times in the US. There will be no limited provider networks, and providers will no longer discriminate against Medicaid and Medicare patients, since reimbursement rates will be standardized. There will be no barriers to provider choice, creating a greater range of options, especially in urban areas with greater concentrations of providers.

With reduced paperwork and administrative burden, providers will have more time to devote to patient care and the management of patient flow. This will be especially important in the face of the expected increase in utilization of health care services. Hospitals, too, will be relieved of an administrative burden and be able to devote more resources to patient services.

In the longer run, NY Health planners will be able to work with the Governor and the Commissioner of Health to increase the supply of providers in rural areas and to provide the necessary capital for expanding patient care facilities and diagnostic technology where it is needed.

For more information on wait times, read this briefing paper. 

Why does NYHA include “care coordination”?

Answer

Patients stay healthier when someone checks whether they are taking their medications, watching their weight, and coming in for check-ups or follow-up appointments. That is why the bill says that each patient must choose a “care manager” to help coordinate these essential services. In most cases, your “care manager” would be your primary care provider.

This should not be confused with “managed care” which refers to the many ways that insurance companies and HMO’s currently limit your care by shifting costs on to you and by forcing you to get referrals or prior authorization before seeing specialists. By contrast, under NYH your care manager is there to help give you more access to care and to check in with you between visits. 

Why not have a national system? Why should New York be doing this?

Answer

It would be great to have truly universal coverage in every state. But Washington is heading in the opposite direction. A progressive state like New York can and should take the lead. The states have long been the “laboratories of democracy,” and the Affordable Care Act gives states new authority to set up their own health care systems that meet Federal goals. Our advocacy could help set the model for healthcare, inspiring other states and then Washington to follow. Canada's system was set up in a province first before being adopted shortly after by the rest of the country.

What doctors and hospitals will I be able to use?

Answer

There will be no restricted network of providers. Every health care provider in the state will be able to participate, and patients can go to whichever provider they choose. 

Will doctors and hospitals be required to participate?

Answer

No. However, there would be no other insurance coverage to pay a non-participating provider.

Will doctors and hospitals be able to charge more than New York Health will pay?

Answer

If a provider is paid by New York Health, the patient may not be charged more (no “balance billing”). 

What share will my employer pay?

Answer

Employers will pay at least 80% of the tax on payroll, and employees up to 20%. Employers can agree to pay all or part of the employee’s share (e.g., through collective bargaining).
Because all employers must pay at least 80% of the tax on payroll income, it raises the floor, making it easier for unions to bargain for the employer to pay more. 

Public employers that currently pay above 80% of the health benefit premium are required to pay at least that percentage of the NY Health payroll tax. This ensures that public unions won’t lose any of their previously negotiated benefits. Unlike the current system, with New York Health, there will be no additional copays, deductibles, out-of-network charges or out-of-pocket costs.

My employer now pays the whole premium for my coverage. Will I now have to pay 20% of the payment?

Answer

Under New York Health, public employers that currently pay above 80% of the health benefit premium are required to pay at least that percentage of the NY Health payroll tax. This ensures that public unions won’t lose any of their previously negotiated benefits. Unlike our current system, there will be no additional copays, deductibles, out-of-network charges or out-of-pocket costs.

What if I’m self-employed?

Answer

You will pay the entire contribution, just as you now pay your whole insurance premium. 

I have a good health plan. Why would I want to trade it for New York Health?

Answer

New York Health will upgrade everyone to better and more comprehensive coverage with full choice of providers, all while saving families thousands of dollars by eliminating premiums, deductibles, co-pays and out-of-network charges.

Why should businesses support the New York Health Act?

Answer

The New York Health Act would be hugely beneficial to businesses. Instead of paying a per employee premium, the business would pay a proportionally smaller tax to the government to offset the cost coverage. Business owners can focus on running their businesses, instead of fighting health insurance companies. The savings can be passed on to their customers, and allow them to pay more in wages. For more on the business case for universal, single-payer healthcare, visit: www.fixithealthcare.com

Will NY need federal waivers to implement the NY Health Act? What about ERISA?

Answer

In order to efficiently integrate existing federal funds (Medicare, the federal share of Medicaid and CHIP, ACA subsidies) into the new system, the New York Health program will seek waivers from the federal government that will enable bulk transfer of these funds to the state based on global, prospective budgeting. 

Federal waivers will be sought to make the program easier to implement. However, the program works even if waivers are not received. The bill includes technical mechanisms that will work in the background, not affecting how NY Health works for patients and providers. Federal funds will continue to flow to New York, as they do now, and the NY Health program will be able to avail itself of them.

For a more thorough overview of the issue, read the FAQs on federal waivers and ERISA.

Reimagining Healthcare:
The New York Health Act
& The Movement for Universal Healthcare

Join us for an engaging and informative discussion of the New York Health Act, our state's statewide universal, single-payer healthcare bill that will provide guaranteed, comprehensive healthcare for everyone who lives or works full time in New York. As healthcare costs continue to rise, disparities persist and dangerous cuts at the federal level loom, understanding this groundbreaking legislation is more important than ever. This session will provide a detailed overview of what the bill covers, how it was developed, and the ways it has evolved over time to address the needs of New Yorkers. We will also examine its current status in the legislative process, the challenges it faces, and what comes next for healthcare reform in the state.

Reimagining Healthcare: The New York Health Act & The Movement for Universal Healthcare

Monday, April 21, 2025
5:30PM-7:00PM
Via Zoom - Closed Captions provided
RSVP: www.bit.ly/IthacaNYHA

Beyond policy details, this discussion will highlight the critical role of advocacy in shaping the future of healthcare and the intersection of the NY Health Act with housing and racial justice. We will explore how students, healthcare workers, and activists across New York and beyond have successfully organized and mobilized to support single-payer healthcare—and how you can join the movement. Whether you're new to the fight for universal healthcare or a seasoned advocate looking to deepen your impact, this conversation will offer valuable insights, actionable strategies, and inspiration to drive meaningful change. Don’t miss this opportunity to learn, engage, and take action in the fight for just, affordable and equitable healthcare for all!

FEATURED SPEAKERS:

Betty Kolod, MD, MPH is an internist and preventive medicine physician, teaching and practicing drug user health in Manhattan.  She trained at SUNY Downstate College of Medicine, the Montefiore Primary Care Social Internal Medicine Residency, and the Mount Sinai Public Health and General Preventive Medicine Residency, of which she is now associate director. Her advocacy and organizing work include her role as Chair of the board of Physicians for a National Health Program-NY Metro Chapter, leadership of NY Doctors Coalition, a group that fosters health worker engagement in community-led social justice work, and on the Health Justice Steering Committee of Northwest Bronx Community and Clergy Coalition. 

Anuj Rao, MD is a primary care doctor at Elmhurst Hospital. He is from Queens, NY and is currently the Medical Director of the Elmhurst Safety Net Clinic and Street Medicine Program. 

Retired Assembly Member Dick Gottfried served as a Member of the New York State Assembly from Manhattan, elected in 1970 while in law school.  He retired in December 2022.  Since 1987, he chaired the Assembly Committee on Health. He wrote and sponsored the NY Health Act to create a universal “improved Medicare for all” single-payer health plan for New York State. He is a board member of the PNHP-NY Metro and Community Service Society.

MODERATOR:

Cameron White is a current first-year graduate student in Cornell's Sloan program pursuing his Master's degree in Health Administration. His Cornell undergraduate degree is in Health Care Policy with minors in Health Equity and Human-Centered Design. Hailing from Atlanta, GA, Cameron is driven to provide health equity to historically marginalized populations through policy, administration, programming, and strategy, with a particular interest in improving outcomes in maternal health. His research interests include demography, food insecurity, housing policy, and youth development/education.

Research

• PNHP's research drives the debate on health care reform. See the most up-to-date research released through the PNHP National Press Page.

• • 10 Excellent Reasons for National Health Care book by Mary O'Brien & Martha Livingston
    
  • 43,000 excess deaths result of ACA repeal 

• • More than 7,100 deaths likely from states' rejection of Medicaid expansion: Health Affairs Blog

• • Minority physicians care for a majority of underserved patients in the U.S.

• • 30 million to remain uninsured under Obamacare: new state-by-state estimates at Health Affairs blog

Announcing Introduction of the Medicare for All Act of 2023!

On May 17, 2023, U.S. Representatives Pramila Jayapal (WA-07), Debbie Dingell (MI-06) and U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders (I-VT) introduced the Medicare for All Act of 2023. The House legislation is cosponsored by more than half of the Democratic Caucus and 13 powerful committee ranking members.

The text of the 2023 Medicare for All Act H.R. 3421 can be read here.

Understanding the Medicare For All Act of 2017

Expanded & Improved Medicare For All Act, H.R. 676

Introduced by Rep. Keith Ellison.
Read the full bill (.pdf).
Read a summary of HR 676 (.doc).
See the full list of Congressional HR 676 cosponsors here.

Brief Summary of the Legislation

Expanded & Improved Medicare For All Act establishes a unique American national universal health insurance program. The bill would create a publicly financed, privately delivered healthcare system that uses the already existing Medicare program by expanding and improving it to all U.S. residents, and all residents living in U.S. territories. The goal of the legislation is to ensure that everyone will have access, guaranteed by law, to the highest quality and most cost effective healthcare services regardless of their employment, income, or healthcare status. With over 45-75 million uninsured in the United States, and another 50 million who are under-insured, the time has come to change our inefficient and costly fragmented non-healthcare system.

Who is Eligible?

Every person living or visiting in the United States and the U.S. Territories would receive a United States National Health Insurance Card and ID number once they enroll at the appropriate location. Social Security numbers may not be used when assigning ID cards.

Healthcare Services Covered

This program will cover all medically necessary services, including primary care, inpatient care, outpatient care, emergency care, prescription drugs, durable medical equipment, long term care, mental health services, dentistry, eye care, chiropractic, and substance abuse treatment. Patients have their choice of physicians, providers, hospitals, clinics, and practices. No co-pays or deductibles are permissible under this act.

Conversion To A Non-Profit Healthcare System

Private health insurers shall be prohibited under this act from selling coverage that duplicates the benefits of the USNHI program. Exceptions to this rule include coverage for cosmetic surgery, and other medically unnecessary treatments. Those who are displaced as the result of the transition to a non- profit healthcare system are the first to be hired and retrained under this act.

Cost Containment Provisions/Reimbursement

The National USNHI program will set reimbursement rates annually for physicians, allow for global budgets (annual lump sums for operating expenses) for healthcare providers; and negotiate prescription drug prices. A “Medicare For All Trust Fund” will be established to ensure a dedicated stream of funding, as well as an annual appropriation to ensure optimal levels of funding for the program.

The conversion to a not-for-profit healthcare system will take place over a 15 year period, through the sale of U.S. treasury bonds.

HR 676 Would Save $400 billion

The U.S. could save enough on administrative costs with a single-payer system to cover the uninsured.

PNHP Co-founders Drs. Steffie Woolhandler and David Himmelstein published this definitive study of the administrative costs of the U.S. health system in the August 21, 2003 edition of the New England Journal of Medicine. After analyzing the costs of insurers, employers, doctors, hospitals, nursing homes and home-care agencies in both the U.S. and Canada, they found that administration consumes 31.0 percent of U.S. health spending, double the proportion of Canada (16.7 percent). Average overhead among private U.S. insurers was 11.7 percent, compared with 1.3 percent for Canada’s single-payer system and 3.6 percent for Medicare. Streamlined to Canadian levels, enough administrative waste could be saved to provide compressive health insurance to all Americans. You can read the study here.

Proposed Funding For HR 676 Program*

Maintain current federal and state funding for existing healthcare programs; employer payroll tax of 4.5%, an employee payroll tax of 3.3%, in addition to the already existing 1.45% for Medicare; establish a 5% health tax on the top 5% of income earners; 10% tax on top 1% of wage earners, 1/3rd of 1% stock transaction tax, closing corporate tax loop-holes; repeal the Bush tax cut for the highest income earners.

*This proposal is put forward by single-payer advocates as one example of a funding system, though HR 676 doesn’t propose a funding program.

Economic Analyses of Medicare for All

• Economic Effects of 5 Illustrative Single-Payer (SP) Health Care Systems; CBO 2022.  
• Universal healthcare as pandemic preparedness: The lives and costs that could have been saved during the COVID-19 pandemic; Galvani et al. PNAS 2022
• How CBO Analyzes the Costs of Proposals for SP Health Care Systems Based on Medicare’s Fee-for-Service Program; CBO 2020. 
• Review of 20 single pay economic analyses: Cai et al. Projected costs of single-payer healthcare financing in the United States: A systematic review of economic analyses; PLoS Med 2020. 
• Review of 7 single payer economic analyses: A Review of Reports on the Cost and Funding of Medicare-for-All; Mosser at UMinn for Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, 2020; PDF.  
• Improving the Prognosis of Health Care in the USA (PDF), Galvani et al. Lancet 2020. 
• Key Design Components & Considerations for Establishing a SP Health Care System; CBO 2019.  
• Economic Analysis of Medicare for All (done for Sander’s bill; UMass-PERI 2018. 
• Single Payer Is Progressively Paid for Compared to Regressive Current and ACA-Public Option (graphic and paper Naomi Zewde PhD for ASHE).

Archived Presentations

TAKE ACTION TODAY: CICK HERE to urge your NY lawmakers & leadership to #PassNYHealth - the New York Health Act (A1466/S3425).

New York Health Act Basics

• Bill text in full is here.
  
• Bill text, bill numbers, committee status, and current cosponsors in the NY Senate here and NY Assembly here.
• Current bill numbers for the 2025-2026 term A1466 / S3425.
• Key Points About The NY Health Act here.
• Visit the Campaign for New York Health www.nyhcampaign.org
  
• Watch & share the PIISD explainer video & more below.

FAQ about the NY Health Act <<< Get answers to the most frequently asked questions about the bill.

.
Q&A with author of the bill, Richard Gottfried!

Still have questions about the NY Health Act? Ask the author of the bill!
How to contact retired Assembly Member & Assembly Health Committee Chair, Dick Gottfried:

• • Step 1: Review the FAQ, Resources & Reports listed on this page including the Fact Sheets linked at the bottom of this page.
  • Step 2: If none address your questions, ask your questions here.
  • Step 3: Get your answers here!

Organizing Resources for the NY Health Act

• Take Action Tool for contacting lawmakers - Use & Share: bit.ly/Action4NYHA
• Join our NY Health Act Working Group: State Legislative Advocacy Working Group (SLAWG)
  You do NOT have to be a healthcare worker to organize with us! Sign up here.
• Social Media - Find & follow us for current actions:
  • Linktree | Bluesky | TikTok | Instagram | Facebook | Twitter | YouTube
  • Join our WhatsApp NYHealthAct Community & Subgroups
  • Social Media Toolkit
• Share Your Healthcare Story! Story Share Guide
• Flyers / Handouts / One-Pagers
  • Insurers Profit Flyer - General Purpose NY Health Act Flyer (double-sided half-sheet)
  • Labor Union Flyer (English) & Labor Union Flyer (Spanish)
    • Half-sheet & ink-friendly Labor Union Flyers for printing here.
  • Fact Sheets (click to jump to list at bottom of this page)

Economic Analysis of the New York Health Act

• Analysis of the Economics of the New York Health Act, Rodberg, Updated 2021: Summary is here. Full report is here.
• RAND study of New York Health Act, 2018: here
• Analysis of the New York Health Act, Friedman, 2015: here

Reports on the New York Health Act

• Healthcare and Racial Justice: Systemic Change Is Needed for a More Equitable Health System
  • Released April 4, 2022 by the Campaign for NY Health and the Black, Puerto Rican, Hispanic and Asian Legislative Caucus
    
  • Report available here and Executive Summary here.
• From Coverage to Care: A People's Report on Healthcare in New York State
  • Released in 2019
  • Report available here and Executive Summary here.

Videos

Watch the new HEATHCARE CONSPIRACY mockumentary short film here: www.healthcareconspiracy.com

PIISD Video Explainer Animation

A Burning Question: What if fighting fires was for-profit, like our healthcare?

Webinars

Below: New York Health Act Town Hall, January 2024, with Dr. Betty Kolod, Assembly Member Dick Gottfried, and MORE-UFT leaders

Below: National Health Insurance: A Post-Election Grand Rounds Webinar (2017) by Ed Weisbart, MD, Chair PNHP - MO

More webinars are available on PNHP NY Metro's Vimeo Channel, and PNHP NY metro's YouTube Channel, and on National PNHP's Youtube Channel

More Films & Documentaries

FIX IT: Healthcare at the Tipping Point
Watch a powerful documentary that reaches across the political and ideological divide to expand support for major healthcare reform.

Why We Need The NY Health Act
4-minute play by Roberta Pikser

Fact Sheets

Archived Presentations
Past Forums

CLICK TO VIEW!

On Thursday, June 13, 2024, we gathered together to recognize the incredible work and sustained commitment of our inspiring 2024 Single Payer Champions!

Oliver Fein, MD, Evie Jones Rich, PhD, Make the Road New York, and the recipients of our Community Activist Award, Richard Hollman and Kevin Deming, have each made significant contributions to our movement for single payer healthcare and health justice. You can read more about each of our honorees on the 2024 Single Payer Champions Honorees page of our website.

We invite you to watch the recording of the celebration below, please share your own photos and view additional photos of the event, here, and view our digital program from the event, here which is filled with memorable photos and acknowledgements!

To view the recording full-screen click here.

At the celebration on Thursday, we additionally recognized the outstanding work of our outgoing SNaHP Student Fellows, Anna Koerner and Saumya Kasliwal, as they move on to residency, and Mandy Strenz for her indispensable contributions as an organizer with National PNHP on the Medicare Dis-Advantage campaign.

We also extended a warm welcome to our incoming Student Fellows, and recent UHLAF graduates, Jennifer Sugijanto and Zachary Gallin, who we're excited to work with in the coming year.

Our great thanks to each of our honorees, presenters, musicians, volunteers, auction donors, sponsors, supporters, student fellows, and our organizing team for making the evening such an energizing, resounding success!

Stay tuned for an announcement in the near future for the upcoming premiere of Richard Hollman and Kevin Deming's next film featuring the New York Health Act! In case you missed it, you can click to watch their first short film below!

To view this video full screen, click here.

It is an honor and a joy to be in this movement alongside such dedicated advocates for the New York Health Act, Medicare for All, and protecting traditional public Medicare from privatization! We thank you all for your efforts and support!

Please submit payment for Silent Auction winning bids below.
If you prefer to make your donation via check, please make it out to:
PNHP-NY Metro
310 W. 86th St. #6B,
New York, NY 10024

PLEASE NOTE:
Auction purchases: Only the excess of the purchase price over the fair market value is tax deductible. 

SILENT AUCTION SNEAK PEEK

We have a number of wonderful contributions from our community up for auction this year!  Secure your tickets today to our Celebration of Single Payer Champions and check out a sneak peek of just a few of our featured auction items below. What you see here is just a sampling, we will have many more fun, beautiful, and delicious offerings up for bid in-person at the celebration!

As Nature Sings

The artist, Kathleen Moore, an RN and activist, began painting at age 70 when she retired, having led the first nursing protest in Jamaica, West Indies. Fair Market Value: $300

Courtesy of Dr. Donald Moore, PNHP NY Metro Board Member, and son of the artist

Wearable Art Necklaces

Created by artist Shelley Herman, these statement jewelry pieces are made of many different semiprecious stones. Fair market value $450

Courtesy of Dr. Carol Schneebaum

WONDER WHEEL PARK EXPERIENCE FOR 2

A great package that includes a Private Tour of the Wonder Wheel with tickets for the Spook-a-Rama, the newest thriller roller coaster, the Phoenix, bumper cars, & Stop the Zombies in 4D. Fair Market Value: $250

Courtesy of Betty Kolod, Board Chair, PNHP NY Metro

COLLEGE ADMISSIONS CONSULTATION

2 hours of college admissions counseling by Zoom with an independent educational consultant, Dr. Robert D Kohen, who has been quoted in US News & World Report, Forbes, & various other media sites. Consultation can include assistance with choice of colleges, applications, essays, interviews, letters of recommendation, etc. Dr. Kohen is a highly regarded member of numerous educational organizations. Fair Market Value $600

Courtesy of Dr. Robert D. Kohen, Educational Consultant, expires 1 year from date of purchase

A TOAST TO OUR SINGLE PAYER CHAMPIONS

Champagne and Belgian Truffles. Fair Market Value: $100

Courtesy of a French Diplomat

The Magic Hour

Framed Photograph signed by Doni Kendig, a photo-realist who captures extraordinary nobility & spirit of her subjects in their natural environments. Fair Market Value: $400

Courtesy of Lisa Flanzraich

Knit One, Purl, One

Order a custom knit acrylic baby blanket from our own beloved PNHP Board member and former honoree, Dr. Elizabeth Rosenthal. Fair Market Value: $65.00

Courtesy of Dr. Rosenthal

PSYCHODYNAMIC PSYCHOTHERAPY

Debra Kuppersmith, LCSW, MS, clinical social worker & psychoanalyst, is offering 2 consultations for someone interested in psychodynamic psychotherapy. Fair Market Value: $250

Courtesy of Debra Kuppersmith, LCSW, MS

Calligraphy

In honor of our three Honorees, we are offering up for bid three beautiful calligraphy pieces created and donated by retired Assembly Member Richard Gottfried, author and original sponsor of the New York Health Act. Characters are read top down, from right column to left.

The round seal in the upper right corner says “All under heaven is for the people,” a 2500 year old Chinese aphorism, a favorite of Dr. Sun Yatsen. The small characters and seal in the lower left corner are Richard Gottfried’s Chinese signature.
Courtesy of Richard Gottfried

Five Confucian Values
“Benevolence. Justice. Propriety. Wisdom. Trustworthiness.”
The small characters in the upper left corner say “Confucian values.”
15" x 16.75"

Can Lang River
“When the Can (pronounced Tsahng) Lang (pronounced Lahng) River water is clear, I wash the tassels of my hat. When the water is muddy, I wash my feet.”
From an ancient Chinese song, quoted by the ancient Chinese philosopher Meng Zi (pronounced Mung Dzuh). Meaning whatever the circumstances, do what you can.
12" x 18”

The Master's Way
“The Master’s (Confucius’s) way is doing your utmost and concern for others, and that’s it.”
The small characters in the upper left corner say “Confucius said.”
12.5" x 20”

MARRIED COUPLE FROM MALI

Wood sculptures purchased on a mission to Mali. Fair Market Value: $85

Courtesy of an Anonymous Donor

Indian Teapot & Cups

Brought to New York from India by A Public Health Student

Courtesy of Dr. Martha Livingston, PNHP NY Metro Board Member

Meet our 2024
Single Payer Champions!

Click here to get your tickets today to join us on June 13!

Our first 2024 honore is Dr. Oliver Fein! Dr. Fein's commitment to social justice dates back to his time as a college student in 1958-1962. Oli was a political science and history major at Swarthmore College where he formed a political action club to fight against racial segregation. He was inspired by the Student Non-violent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) and decided he needed a skill to work in the civil rights movement and applied to medical school.

Following his first year at Western Reserve School of Medicine, Oli married Charlotte Phillips, who was also a medical student at Reserve. They decided to apply to Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) to start an Economic Research and Action Project (ERAP) in Cleveland. They moved into a poor white community with ten activists and worked on community organizing projects directed at building “the inter-racial movement of the poor.”  At the medical school, they helped create a chapter of the Student Health Organization (SHO) which advocated for community health projects that students from medical, nursing, dental and social work schools could participate in together. 

In 1967-68 Dr. Fein started his internship in the midst of the Vietnam War. He was drafted and sought conscientious objector status which was granted by his local, but not by his state draft board. His three year legal struggle as a conscientious objector, took him up to the Supreme Court, during which time he could not continue in residency. In the interim, he worked on health policy issues with the Health Policy Advisory Center (Health-PAC), a new left think tank. In 1972, he returned to residency training at Lincoln Hospital in the south Bronx, a hotbed of political activism in the 1970’s. After completing residency, Dr. Fein was recruited to Columbia Presbyterian Hospital, where he helped create the Division of General Internal Medicine. Besides practicing Internal Medicine, he served as Chief of General Medicine Outpatient Services.

In 1986 Oli convened a nationwide conference on health policy, where he met Dr. David Himmelstein and Dr. Steffie Woolhandler, the founders of PNHP. Soon after, he formed the NY Metro Chapter of PNHP. In 1993 he went to Washington DC as a Robert Wood Johnson Health Policy Fellow, advocating for primary care as President Clinton took office with healthcare reform high on the agenda. He returned toNew York City in 1995 to serve as Board Chair of the NY Metro Chapter of PNHP. In 2009-10 Dr. Fein was elected and served as President of National PNHP. He then continued on to serve as Board Chair of the NY Metro Chapter of PNHP through December of 2023.

Oli was ahead of his time in understanding the crucial role that primary care played in a just and effective healthcare system. This eventually landed him a position at Cornell Medical College as an Associate Dean for Affiliations, teaching medical students about domestic and international political issues, including the struggle for single payer healthcare reform.

Dr. Fein is a household name in the field of health justice. As its leader for over 30 years, he built PNHP NY Metro into the largest PNHP chapter and has won innumerable awards from countless public health and policy organizations. He is a legend whose impact on civil rights and health justice is beyond extraordinary, so please get your tickets TODAY to join us on June 13 at 6PM to toast Dr. Oliver Fein and our other 2024 Benefit Celebrating Single Payer Champions who have contributed greatly to the struggle for healthcare justice! You can also contribute in Dr. Fein's honor here.

PNHP NY Metro is deeply honored to present our Lifetime Achievement Award to Dr. Evelyn Jones Rich, a civil rights icon, at our health justice celebration on June 13, 2024. Secure your tickets to join us! 

Dr. Evelyn Jones Rich has devoted her entire life to the fight for social & racial justice. With help from a scholarship fund to promote an inter-racial college experience, Evie became the first Black student to live on campus while attending Bryn Mawr College (1950-1954), where she will be attending her 70th reunion later this month! On day one at Bryn Mawr, she joined Students for Democratic Action (SDA), the student affiliate of Americans for Democratic Action (ADA),  where she learned to be an effective organizer, agitator, and advocate. In the words of John Lewis, Evie has always made “good trouble”.

Dr. Rich and her late husband, Marvin, were true pioneers of the Civil Rights Movement. As a proponent for nonviolent direct action at CORE (Congress of Racial Equality), she began her struggle against segregation in the 1950’s. Evie and Marvin used the techniques of nonviolent direct action to confirm that the public facilities in Washington, DC, where then President Dwight Eisenhower had issued an executive order, were actually accepting Black visitors.  

In New York City she organized sit-ins and picket lines that targeted major institutions, including Macy’s and the Daily News, to demand that they hire people of color. CORE published a booklet, “Cracking the Color Line”, which described this work that motivated a different generation of people, those who challenged the beliefs of their parents and universities. The Freedom Rides were the result of this work, having captured the imagination of so many.

Evie interacted closely with the labor movement which supported CORE when her husband was its Community Relations Director, where he raised much of the money for the Freedom Rides.
Evie wants to ensure that we never forget the historical significance of the Freedom Rides in 1961 and the multi-faceted role of Labor in the Civil Rights Movement. She is extremely proud to have developed with others a virtual museum, www.laborarts.org, which celebrates the labor movement and displays the cultural and artistic heritage of working people.

Evie is an educator with a PhD from Columbia University in African Studies and Education. She is the co-author with Immanuel Wallerstein of an innovative textbook, Africa: Tradition and Change, which presents and analyzes original source documents revealing the panorama of African History. She was hired by Dr. Donna Shalala to be Dean for the Hunter College Campus schools in 1985 and to specifically identify gifted African American and Hispanic youngsters to integrate Hunter College elementary and high school. 

As a lifelong member of Americans for Democratic Action (ADA), Evie has attended every ADA convention which is where she was first exposed to the idea of single payer healthcare by a passionate Cleveland physician. She believes that healthcare is not only a human right, but also a civil right. 

As a municipal retiree, Evie has energized the present struggle against New York City’s attempt to put its retirees into a Medicare Advantage Plan. She stresses that this is not just a retiree problem, but a fight for all of our lives. Evie strongly believes that Labor should revive their appetite for major worker rights reforms and seize the opportunity to support the current movement for single payer healthcare, which would be a momentous win for workers and their families, akin to having established the 40-hour workweek.

Although Evie is retired, she is never tired. You will see her speaking out at rallies in the heat of summer and marching in frosty winter streets, conducting radio interviews, writing articles, and lobbying in Albany and DC, while continuously building strong coalitions and generously sharing her resources and hands-on organizing strategies. Her mother taught her to never accept “NO” as an answer; to always stand up for right and justice and to never look around, because all too often, she will be standing alone!

Evie has been recognized with multiple awards from the most highly respected organizations for her lifelong accomplishments in civil rights. She is an icon for social justice whose impact on this country is nothing less than legendary. She insists that We, the ordinary people, drive society, change society, so like the Freedom Riders and CORE, we must strive to do the same for healthcare justice. Our work is just beginning!

Please join us on June 13th to celebrate the remarkable achievements of this extraordinary civil rights and health justice icon, the beloved Dr. Evelyn Jones Rich. Contributions can also be made in Evie's honor, here.

PNHP NY Metro is thrilled to announce Make the Road New York as our final 2024 Health Justice Award honoree. Get your tickets today for our 2024 Benefit Celebrating Single Payer Champions on Thursday, June 13, 2024 at 6PM, in person or on Zoom!

Make the Road’s admirable mission is to build the power of immigrant and working class communities to achieve dignity and justice. They identify the core values necessary to improve immigrant’s lives and support them to reach their goals. In addition to policy advocacy, Make the Road is unique in providing direct services, such as food pantries, English proficiency and civics classes, youth and legal support, and organizing techniques to build the future of their communities. 

Basic human necessities like housing and healthcare are extremely difficult to obtain, especially for immigrants who are undocumented. Yet undocumented people work, contribute to society, and pay billions of dollars into the US federal & state tax systems that fund healthcare. Make the Road New York is one of the lead organizations in the #Coverage4All Campaign to expand the Essential Plan, using available federal funds, to provide insurance for low income and immigrant New Yorkers, many of whom are currently excluded from eligibility for coverage because of their immigration status.

Make the Road New York additionally sits on the Steering Committee of the Campaign for New York Health. They are staunch supporters of the New York Health Act which is our state single payer bill that would provide comprehensive, fairly-funded healthcare, including Long Term Care, for all New Yorkers regardless of income, citizenship, or any other status. Make the Road is thus one of our most dedicated partners in the struggle for universal healthcare.

Please join PNHP NY Metro on June 13th in celebrating Make the Road New York for the remarkable work that they undertake in making peoples’ lives so much more meaningful, productive and humane. The work Make the Road does is essential to our movement to pass the New York Health Act and Medicare for All, and for health justice for all. It is our honor to recognize Make the Road New York’s remarkable accomplishments and dedication with the 2024 PNHP NY Metro Health Justice Award.

COMMUNITY ACTIVIST RECOGNITION

In addition to our honorees named above, we are delighted to announce that, this year, we will also be recognizing two extraordinary Community Activists; Kevin Deming and Richard Hollman.

Kevin Deming is a producer and filmmaker in the commercial and narrative world, working in both lighting and editing.

Through his production company Working Artist Films, Kevin’s current push in directing comes alongside his desire to tell complex stories that shine light on the human condition. The opportunity to use his skillset to promote social justice excites him and he has been grateful to work alongside other talented creators like Richard Hollman in advancing these narratives.

Richard Hollman is an activist, actor, writer, musician, and long time supporter of the New York Health Act having participated in all manner of advocacy for the state-wide single-payer movement including educational events, lobby days in Albany, phone banking, marches, bike rides, and die-ins.

Rich was a TEDx speaker and is the founder of the all-volunteer run registered charity, Care Packages for the Homeless, now entering its 10th year. He also was once the improv coach to the Real Housewives of New York.

Click to view the short film on YouTube

Rich and Kevin are the creative minds behind a memorable satirical short film, released in 2021 in partnership with the Campaign for New York Health, that reimagines a world in which fire departments operate like our dysfunctional healthcare system. The film features Rich alongside two other prominent New York Health Act supporters; New York State Senator Jabari Brisport and Assembly Member Zohran Mamdani.

An all-volunteer effort, Rich and Kevin recruited a highly skilled crew to assist them in bringing their vision to fruition, each crew member contributing their time and expertise in support of the movement to pass the New York Health Act. Since its release, their film has garnered close to a million views across various online platforms. But that's not all!

We are extremely excited to announce that Rich and Kevin's next film about the NY Health Act will be coming out later this Summer!

We can’t share that film just yet but we can share a few photos taken during production as a little preview, to get you as excited as we are for its release!

Stay tuned for an announcement about Rich and Kevin's next film's release in the near future, and join us on Thursday to celebrate their hard work and achievements! CLICK HERE to get your in-person or virtual tickets and to find more info!

We are thrilled to be honoring Dr. Oliver Fein at our 2024 Celebration of Single Payer Champions.  Oli has been Chair of the NY-Metro Chapter of Physicians for a National Health Program (PNHP) for over 30 years and recently stepped down on December 31, 2023.  He remains an active member of the Chapter and is a strong supporter of its new Chair, Dr. Betty Kolod.  

Please contribute below in honor of Dr. Oliver Fein's tireless work to advance single payer and to support PNHP and the NY-Metro Chapter and click here to secure your tickets to join us on June 13th.

Purchase ad space in our digital program for your organization or use the space to send a special message to our 2024 honorees. The ads will be projected during the 2024 Reception Celebrating Single Payer Champions and distributed digitally to all supporters.

You can see a sample of a past Digital Program here. (Note: this year's program will be formatted horizontally)

AD PRICING & SIZING:

$800: FULL-PAGE AD

20" W x 11.25" H, (1920 x 1080px 16:9) min 300 dpi
Social Media Promotion*
2 Tickets Included

$500: HALF-PAGE AD

10" W x 11.25" H (960 x 1080px) min 300 dpi
Social Media Promotion*
1 Ticket Included

$250: QUARTER-PAGE AD

10" W x 5.6" H (960 x 540px) min 300dpi

*If you would like to be included in our social media promotion, please provide a version of your artwork that is square, along with any copy you would like as part of a caption.

ARTWORK SUBMISSION DEADLINE EXTENDED:

Friday June 7, 2024 by 5:00pm

Send artwork or any questions to Morgan: morgan@pnhpnymetro.org

Payment can be made by credit card below or by check.

Make checks payable to "PNHP-NY Metro" and mail to our temporary mailing address:

PNHP-NY Metro
310 W. 86th St. #6B
New York, NY 10024

Samples from years past:

We are thrilled this year to have a large enough space to be able to offer sliding scale tickets to our 2024 Benefit Celebrating Single Payer Champions.

The suggested donation level is $25 for sliding scale tickets but all are welcome at whatever level you can give.
Please contribute what you can to help support our work in the movement for single payer!

We look forward to toasting our 2024 Single Payer Champions with you!

Note: Contributions of $250 or more include membership in national PNHP!

Purchase your selected in-person tickets to attend our 2024 Benefit Celebrating Single-Payer Champions below!
We look forward to toasting our 2023 Single-Payer Champions with you!

If purchasing tickets for 2 or more people, please list the ticket-holder's names in the comment box below!

To make a different selection or for more information about our Benefit Celebrating Single-Payer Champions click here.
If you are unable to attend in person, please purchase virtual tickets by clicking here!

Not able to join us in-person? Not to worry, simply purchase your virtual tickets below!

We understand that gathering in-person doesn't work for everyone and we are so thankful that the ability to hold virtual programming has made our events much more accessible to folks who are far away, disabled, busy, or even just commitment-averse!

Our suggested tax-deductible donation for virtual attendance is $250 but - at any donation level - you are invited to join us on Zoom. We will email a Zoom link upon donation to all who contribute below and a reminder will be sent the day before the celebration.
As an added bonus: Contributions of $250 and above include membership in national PNHP!

We are so grateful to have your support and presence in this movement!


Looking for info on attending in-person instead? Click here!