Coverage For All fails to pass state Assembly

State Sen. Gustavo Rivera’s “Coverage For All” bill, which sought to extend the essential plan to undocumented New York residents, has failed to pass the Assembly. The bill was previously excluded from Governor Hochul’s state budget in May, but there was still hope for it when it passed the state Senate on June 8 up until now.

“I am incredibly disappointed that Coverage For All did not pass the Assembly despite the herculean efforts of Assemblymember Gonzalez-Rojas and our group of dedicated advocates,” Rivera said in a statement. “Together, we had to fight back against misinformation and misguided apprehensions about our legislation in an urgent effort to move this bill.”

Rivera said that the bill was an opportunity for “much needed healthcare coverage” without causing additional costs to the state and to prevent New York residents from delayed medical care and damaging debts. The bill could have been fully paid for by federal passthrough funding through the 1332 waiver program, according to Rivera.

He also criticized Hochul for making a pledge last year that the state would seek federal funds in expanding healthcare coverage to eligible undocumented New York residents. In April 2022, Hochul said New York would reach out to the federal government and ask for a waiver that would assist undocumented immigrants in healthcare coverage.

“We were looking forward to working with her to bring millions of dollars to the State to cover this population,” Rivera said. “Instead, thousands of New Yorkers will continue to rely on the emergency room for healthcare at an incredibly steep cost to the State.”

Despite not passing the assembly, several legislation from Rivera have passed both houses, including the Fair Medical Debt Reporting Act which is part of his End Medical Debt campaign.

Affirmative action reversal scrutinized

The Supreme Court’s decision to end affirmative action in colleges and universities has faced criticism from local legislators. In a 6-3 vote, the court ruled that Harvard and the University of North Carolina’s admission process, which took into consideration an applicant’s race, was unconstitutional.

“The Supreme Court’s decision to gut affirmative action not only overturns decades of precedent and progress toward increasing minority representation at colleges and universities — it affirms there are limits to achieving the American dream for non-white people and students in this country,” U.S. Rep. Ritchie Torres of NY’s 15th Congressional District said in a statement.

U.S. Rep Adriano Espaillat  shared similar discontentment of the news in a statement saying the “MAGA Court’s” decision will be detrimental to POC students and will ripple into a wider scale.

“This decision fails to acknowledge the ongoing systemic barriers and the generations of policies that perpetuate inequality.

“We must continue to advocate for policies that promote racial inclusivity and address the historical injustices of Black and brown people,” Councilman Eric Dinowitz said in a statement.

Bus facilities receive $6M with Torres help

U.S. Rep. Ritchie Torres helped secure $6,000,000 in federal funding to bus facilities along Jerome Avenue.

The funding will implement critical safety and accessibility improvements to bus facilities.

“Under the leadership of President Biden and his ‘Investing in America’ agenda, investing in our infrastructure isn’t a punchline – it’s providing real results to meet the needs of residents,” Torres said in a statement.

Torres previously wrote a letter to Nuria Fernandez, Administrator of the Federal Transit Administration, regarding the city’s transportation department, stating it was “imperative” that transportation infrastructure was improved in the Bronx for its residents.