| Contact: | Sunny Mindel / Brenda Pérez (212) 788-2958 |
CITY HALL. Mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani today praised Congress for restoring to teaching hospitals and other health care providers the projected Medicare cuts over the next two years that were included in the Balanced Budget Act of 1997. Restorations total $143 million for New York State. Of that $143 million, $99 million of the restored funds will go to New York City hospitals. The restorations amount to $64 million for the State, including $45 million for the City in FFY2000, and $79 million for the State, including $54 million for the City in FFY2001.
Also in attendance were: Deputy Mayor for Operations Joseph Lhota; Senior Advisor to the Mayor Anthony Coles; President of the Greater New York Hospital Association Kenneth E. Raske; President and CEO of Jamaica Hospital Medical Center David Rosen; and President and CEO of Our Lady of Mercy Medical Center Gary Horan.
"This past week, at the request of Senator Daniel P. Moynihan and New York's medical and health care community - including the Greater New York Hospital Association, Local 1199, and others - I spoke with the Senate and House leadership and strongly encouraged them to restore these Medicare cuts. In addition, I wrote to Senator Trent Lott explaining the deleterious impact these cuts would have on New York" said Mayor Giuliani.
The Mayor continued, "The restorations are critical to maintaining the level of excellence of our teaching hospitals and other medical institutions, including their commitment to developing new treatments and technologies for patient care. The proposed funding cuts also would have had a devastating impact on the ability of our teaching hospitals to provide care for the needy. More than 15 percent of doctors in America are trained in New York State, and the potential impact of these cuts could affect health care - not only locally, but across the nation."
Mayor Giuliani commended Senate Majority Leader Trent Lott, House Speaker Dennis Hastert, and others for their leadership in recognizing the unique role and importance of teaching hospitals and for restoring this funding.
"I would also like to thank Senator Moynihan for his tireless efforts to protect
New York's teaching hospitals. His work with Senator William Roth on the Senate
Finance Committee was critical in the effort to preserve this funding," said
Mayor Giuliani. "Our efforts have helped restore significant Federal teaching
hospital funding for the next two years. But, since the restorations have not
yet been extended by Congress beyond those years, we're going to continue working
to restore the funds fully for Fiscal Years 2002, 2003, and 2004."