Bobby Cantwell Unveils Health Care Reform Plan
Candidate announces new plan to deliver accessible and affordable health care to north country families and seniors

Media Release

WATERTOWN, N.Y., Oct. 2  —  Today, Bobby Cantwell, Clayton town councilman and 118th Assembly District candidate (Jefferson and St. Lawrence Counties), introduced his new plan to reform health care in New York and deliver accessible and affordable health care services to families and seniors. 

Cantwell's plan expands the EPIC prescription drug assistance program, recruits and retains nurses and primary care physicians, and offers tax credits to help small businesses provide health insurance to their employees. 

"Now more than ever, reforming our state's ailing health care system has got to be a top priority for our state Legislature," said Cantwell. "This is particularly important as we are beginning to deal with the first wave of aging Baby Boomers who are retiring and adding new challenges to our state's overburdened health care system." 

"As a father, I know families and seniors need dependable and affordable health care. Every person deserves access to the best health care possible," said Cantwell. 

"Families are being forced to make difficult choices between quality healthcare and paying the bills. That just isn't right. North Country families deserve better, and when I go to Albany, I will work my hardest to ensure families have the top-notch care and coverage they need, and deserve," said Cantwell

"We also need to help seniors in any way we can. Too many seniors are already suffering from high property taxes and worrying about the cost of home heating fuel. They shouldn't have to worry about paying for their life-giving prescriptions too. My plan will expand the successful EPIC program to help more seniors afford their medications," said Cantwell. 

"We can start to deliver the care people need by enabling small businesses to afford to provide health insurance coverage to their employees through tax incentives and credits. We can save more lives every year by giving physicians the high-tech health information tools they need to treat patients effectively, and we need to give incentives to doctors to practice in underserved and rural areas," said Cantwell.

"The health care industry is complicated and there are no simple magic solutions to the serious problems we face. However, there are some uncomplicated steps we can take to address some of these issues in a pro-active way. These are the kinds of forward-thinking people-first ideas I will advance as Assemblyman," said Cantwell. 

Cantwell's Health Care Reform Plan is on the following page.


BOBBY CANTWELL'S HEALTH CARE REFORM PLAN

●  "EPIC Extra" tax deduction – Expand EPIC to provide seniors with a $1,000 prescription drug tax credit annually.

●  Senior Long Term Health Care Insurance – Help senior citizens with their health insurance needs, by increasing the tax credit for long term care insurance to 25 percent of premiums paid. 

●  Recruiting and Retaining Physicians in Underserved and Rural Areas – Establish a program to provide medical malpractice insurance rate to physicians who chose to practice in rural counties. 

●  Reversing New York's Nursing Shortage - Establish scholarship and loan programs for nursing students and enact the New York State Nursing Shortage Correction Act.

●  Health Insurance Deductions -- Offer healthcare deductions (100 percent deduction for medical and dental care) and create a tax credit equal to 15 percent of the cost of health insurance premiums paid by small businesses for their employees.

●  Pro-Bono Medical Care Tax Credit – Reduce the number of people who visit hospital emergency rooms for non emergency care by offering a tax credit to doctors and other health care professionals who give free care.

●  Vote against HMO Tax -- Vote against any measure that puts an HMO's bottom-line over that of patients' rights.

●  HMO Premium Rate Adjustments – Protect individuals and businesses that purchase coverage from health insurers and HMO's by requiring approval of the Superintendent of Insurance, subsequent to a public hearing, for any proposed rate increase in excess of ten percent a year,

●  Health Information Technology – Support Health Information Technology (Heath IT) to provide comprehensive management of medical information and its secure exchange between health care consumers and providers. This new technology will enable doctors to better treat patients thereby saving more lives.

●  Continuing Education for Lyme Disease – Require every physician, registered professional nurse, clinical laboratory technologist and pharmacist to complete course work or training in the diagnosis and treatment of Lyme Disease – which is a growing epidemic. 

Official: BobbyCantwell.com