The SF Teacher Strike ended with a tentative settlement, the major issue was the cost of health plan; teachers in SF pay $1500 a month for family coverage.
“San Francisco teachers cheered the tentative agreement — especially its coverage of 100% of premiums on family health plans, which run about $1,500 per month, beginning next January”
See details of the tentative agreement here and here
Paul Krugman on his almost daily substack talks with a major economist who takes a deep dive into the cost of health here.
In the early 1990s Dick Gottfried, filed a NYS Health Care bill, to create a Medicare for All health program covering all residents of NYS,
A summary of the bill,
“Richard Gottfried retired from the NYS Assembly in 2022, his signature legislation, the New York Health Act, continues to be championed by other lawmakers in 2024 to establish a state-level, single-payer health care system. The bill aims to provide universal, comprehensive coverage, including dental and vision, eliminating premiums and deductibles.
- Core Purpose: Replaces private insurance with a publicly funded, single-payer system (New York Health) for all state residents, regardless of employment or income.
- Benefits & Coverage: Covers all medical care, including primary, preventative, specialist, hospital, long-term care, prescription drugs, dental, and vision.
- Funding Mechanism: Financed through a progressive payroll tax on employers and income tax on residents, aimed at reducing overall health spending.
I took a deep dive and have serious objections to the bill as written
The bill creates a Board made up of a wide range of appointees from advocacy organizations, medical organizations, etc. plus a few from unions, The law will not spell out the extremely extensive details of the plan, including the funding mechanism. The Board appointed by the governor and legislative leadership will determine the intricacies.
Gottfried said the plan must be created by the field, the representatives and advocates, not legislators
Before you jump off the diving board check out the depth of the pool.
Unions, who negotiate health plans with management have opposed the plan, and asked, without success, for a “carve out,” allowing unions to continue labor/management negotiations Needless to say the bill is complicated, the bill is an outline, after passage, the appointed members will begin to fill in the blanks, the specifics of the law.
My concern: when the powerful say trust me weaker folks tend to get pregnant, coarse; however, you get my point.
While I have nothing to do with the inner discussions I would suggest a few non-negotiables:
* an algorithm to determine the cost to employees, to ask unions to support without knowing the cost is a definite deal breaker
* the ability to arbitrate disputes, complicated, however, to say, “just trust us” is not acceptable
Critics argue the cost of the plan is astronomical and not viable, and the huge bureaucracy to run the plan unwieldy and unworkable. .Supporters counter New Yorkers would have a high quality health plan at no cost
Gottfried responded to my scribblings,
The Goodman opinion focuses a lot on the point that many details of the system are not spelled out in the bill. Of course not. Does a union contract name all the thousands of medical procedures and drugs the health benefit might cover and the price for each? But the bill spells out – in law – the key fundamentals that make clear that New York Health is the right choice for all of us, and far better than any other health plan, union or otherwise.
The Trump election sweep postpones the possibility of a plan until the Democrats in Washington have power.
The new leadership of the Retired Teachers Chapter have formed a committee to discuss the NYS Medicare for All bill.
I served on contract negotiating committees and we attempted to agree to specific language, not good faith promises, and to ask if the cost is not out of line. The plan will be funded by a progressive health tax, similar to the progressive state income tax. How much will it cost a teacher? a retired teacher? a teacher of the proper age receiving RMD for their TDA?
San Francisco went on strike primarily over health care costs and the settlement is complicated as there are cost saving elements in the proposed settlement.
Health care costs are a national problem and Trump and company are attempting to cut back on Medicare.
Hopefully the RTC committee does not politicize the issue, hopefully a full exploration and I believe my “concerns” have to be addressed.
Ed in the Apple: Blogging on the Intersection of Education and Politics Title 