Archives of the Mayor's Press Office

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Date: Tuesday, April 27, 1999

Release # 147-99

Contact: Sunny Mindel/Brenda Pérez (212) 788-2958
Leah Binder, Office of Special Advisor to the Mayor for Health Policy (212) 788-2888


MAYOR GIULIANI FUNDS INITIATIVE TO MAKE AFFORDABLE HEALTH CARE INSURANCE AVAILABLE TO STATEN ISLAND SMALL BUSINESS OWNERS

Congressman Fossella Will Work With Local Hospitals And Insurers To Address The Needs Of Small Business Owners

Flanked by Staten Island Borough President Guy V. Molinari, Mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani kicked off a new initiative that will help expand access to comprehensive, low-cost health insurance to small businesses on Staten Island. The Mayor announced that the City will fund a market research study to assess Staten Island small business health care insurance needs and determine affordable premium levels and benefits packages for small business owners. The study, requested by Congressman Vito J. Fossella is expected to cost less than $25,000, and was approved by the Mayor's Office.

Hardworking New Yorkers should be able to find affordable health care insurance," the Mayor said. "This study will help us expand the market for small business owners and their employees."

Congressman Fossella and the Mayor will use the findings of the study to work with local hospitals and insurers to develop an affordable insurance package to be offered by the private sector.

The initiative announced today is modeled after Small Business Health Insurance (SBHI) a public-private partnership in the South Bronx, East Harlem, and northern Brooklyn announced by the Mayor in his State of the City address in January. SBHI offers small businesses with two to fifty employees a full health care package for less than half the average cost in New York City. SBHI is sold by Group Health Incorporated (GHI) and covers services at three HHC Hospitals.

Congressman Fossella described the barriers to affordable health care insurance and said, "This initiative, modeled after similar efforts by the Mayor in other parts of the City, will help expand access to low-cost, comprehensive health insurance for thousands of Staten Islanders. I want to thank the Mayor for his partnership in taking this plan from the drawing board to reality."

Rosa Gil, DSW, Special Advisor to the Mayor for Health Policy, said, "We are very pleased to bring this initiative to Staten Island and we are confident that it will be as helpful to small businesses as other initiatives have been. Among those initiatives is the SBHI."

Currently, the average premium on Staten Island for an individual costs between $200 and $300 per month. For families, that cost can go as high as $500 to $800 per month. Under the new initiative, premiums may be lowered by as much as 50% for owners and employees of small businesses.

Staten Island is home to an estimated 6,500 small businesses. A Staten Island Chamber of Commerce study found that 50% or more of its 1,000 members do not provide health care coverage. A survey of New York City small business employers commissioned by the Mayor's Office in 1997 also found that half of small businesses offered no coverage.

The selection of a firm to conduct the study could be completed by late June/early July.

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