New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio on Tuesday announced plans to launch “the largest, most comprehensive plan in the nation” to guarantee health care coverage for all city residents, including those in the country illegally.
“Health care is a right, not a privilege reserved for those who can afford it,” de Blasio said in a statement. “While the federal government works to gut health care for millions of Americans, New York City is leading the way by guaranteeing that every New Yorker has access to quality, comprehensive access to care, regardless of immigration status or their ability to pay.”
The liberal mayor said the plan will serve the 600,000 New Yorkers who don’t have insurance by strengthening NYC’s public health insurance option, MetroPlus.
It will also guarantee health care access to those ineligible for insurance, including illegal immigrants who live in New York. That program, NYC Care, will launch this summer and will cost at least $100 million annually at full scale, the city said.
In a tweet, de Blasio said the plan will “ensure the first stop for people isn’t the emergency room.” He argued that preventative care and access to primary care doctors will cut down on emergency room visits. – READ MORE