Statement from Eric Linzer, HPA President & CEO
“Our member health plans have been committed to making health care more affordable, working hard to rein in rising health care costs and contain their own costs. The proposed premium rate requests are reasonable, reflecting the cost of care and taking into account a number of factors contributing to rising health care costs. Among them:
- The cost of prescription drugs, with prices rising across all segments of the pharmaceutical industry – specialty, brand name and generic drugs;
- Prices charged by hospitals, physician groups and other clinicians, which continue to rise, in part, as a result of the consolidation taking place in the delivery system; and
- Changes at the federal level, including the loss of the individual mandate, pending regulations around association health plans, and the failure to pass measures that would stabilize the market.
“The rising costs remain the most pressing issue in health care facing employers and consumers, and our member health plans are focused on measures to contain costs so that health care is affordable for all New Yorkers. It is vital that others in the health care system – hospitals, physicians, pharmaceutical manufacturers, and the state – make a similar commitment to controlling the cost of health care.
“With lawmakers preparing to wrap up the 2019 session in the coming weeks, it is essential that state leaders avoid imposing new mandated benefits or restricting the use of health plan tools designed to contain health care costs and instead consider measures that will help to stabilize the market to provide relief to consumers.”