Confab on state healthcare

The recent panel discussion “CureNY: What’s the Prognosis?” discussed current issues that exist within the state’s healthcare delivery system and many its own list of recommendations on how to improve it.
The event took place on Thursday, October 18, 2007 at the Lighthouse Executive Conference Center & Theatre.
New York Business Group on Health Executive Director Laurel Pickering was the moderator of the discussion. The panelists who participated were Atlantis Health Plan President and CEO Dr. Sury Anand, Long Island Health Alliance Executive Vice President Fred Barba, Executive Deputy Commissioner of the Office of Citywide Health Insurance Access Marjorie A. Cadogan, small business expert Mark Kessler, Pitney Bowes Medical Director Dr. J. Brent Pawlecki and Professional Group Plans President Keith Zuckerman.
Among the discussion was the amount of New Yorkers who are uninsured, which is 2.5 million. Of these, many are working and 200,000 are between 18 and 25 years old.
Another finding was that, “Currently, New York State spends more per capita on healthcare than any other state in the nation. Despite this level of spending, New York ranks average or worse on important quality indicators based on research studies by the federal Agency for Healthcare Research.”
They also found that, in 2000 69 percent of employers offered health insurance, but that number has now decreased to 60 percent.
The group also came up with some recommendations. They include eliminating the secrecy that exists when it comes to medical care prices and costs, having providers do evidence-based medicine and expanding government programs like Healthy New York.
“Universal healthcare is coming to New York,” Anand said. “We carefully look at outlier cases for unnecessary procedures, over-prescribing; over-practiced medicine and we make suggestions for change while educating the consumer. In spite of everything, we provide the best care in the world here in New York and we should work to make it better.”