
FilAm Leaders Laud Bill as Tens of Thousands of New Yorkers Eligible To Receive Health Coverage Under C4A Legislation
Albany, NY— On February 1, 2022, the New York State Senate Health committee voted to move bill S1572, also known as Coverage For All, forward to the Finance committee. The legislation passed with 7 yes votes to 6 no votes. With this move, both versions of the legislation have progressed out of each legislative houses’ Health committees.


“Today’s Senate Health Committee vote reflects the growing momentum and recognition of the need for Coverage For All,” said Murad Awawdeh, New York Immigration Coalition Executive Director. “This is an urgent bill that state lawmakers must pass in this year’s budget to ensure the well-being of the entire state and workforce. The pandemic has made it clear that lack of health coverage is a life-or-death issue. We thank Senator Gustavo Rivera for long championing immigrant health and moving Coverage For All forward in this critical time.”
Coverage For All (A880/S1527) would create a state-funded essential plan eligible to New Yorkers up to 200% of the federal poverty line regardless of immigration status. New estimates place the cost of the bill at $345 million to cover tens of thousands of uninsured New Yorkers. In 2021, a FamiliesUSA report found that one-third of COVID related deaths were due to insurance gaps.
Manhattan-based Filipino American lawyers lauded the bill.


Philanthropist and lawyer Loida Nicolas Lewis said, “it is high time that the richest state of the United States New York provide Universal Heath for all New Yorkers.”
Immigration lawyer Licelle Cobrado said that “Universal access to health care, without discrimination, is a human right included in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The C4A Legislation will bring New York closer to the realization of such. The high number of uninsured New Yorkers has been a lingering problem. Many lost their employer-sponsored insurance during the pandemic. I hope New Yorkers who qualify for the state-funded essential plan get insured.” # (With a press release from the NY Immigration Coalition and OSM! interviews)


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