To: Governor Andrew Cuomo
Restore affordable out-of network healthcare
We are deeply troubled by the rapidly growing trend for employers and health-insurance companies to withhold coverage for out-of-network healthcare services. Current options are increasingly limited to HMO plans and PPOs with dauntingly high out-of-network deductibles.
Among us are numerous consumers of healthcare services. We are increasingly deprived of affordable (i.e., insurance-supported) opportunities to consult with, and receive treatment from, practitioners whose specific characteristics, methods, treatments, and/or generous time allowance are compatible with our unique needs. We need and deserve practitioners who can take the time to truly evaluate and understand our concerns and conditions, and readily provide the treatments which are best for us (without needing to petition, often unsuccessfully, for third-party approval). Deprivation of such options can often seriously undermine psychological wellbeing, physical health, and in some cases, survival itself.
Among us are numerous consumers of healthcare services. We are increasingly deprived of affordable (i.e., insurance-supported) opportunities to consult with, and receive treatment from, practitioners whose specific characteristics, methods, treatments, and/or generous time allowance are compatible with our unique needs. We need and deserve practitioners who can take the time to truly evaluate and understand our concerns and conditions, and readily provide the treatments which are best for us (without needing to petition, often unsuccessfully, for third-party approval). Deprivation of such options can often seriously undermine psychological wellbeing, physical health, and in some cases, survival itself.
Why is this important?
Employers and health-insurance companies are increasingly withholding coverage for out-of-network healthcare services. Current options are increasingly limited to HMO plans and PPOs with dauntingly high out-of-network deductibles. Please help restore the freedom of practitioners to provide, and consumers to receive, a full range of treatment options in a manner which is economically feasible for both. Deprivation of such options can often seriously undermine psychological well-being, physical health, and in some cases, survival itself.