January 11, 2021
Statement from HANYS President Bea Grause, RN, JD, on Gov. Cuomo’s 2021 State of the State address
The governor has rightly acknowledged the significant impact COVID-19 has had on all aspects of New York state. HANYS and our members share the governor’s urgent priorities of defeating COVID-19 and vaccinating as many New Yorkers as possible, quickly and equitably. The governor laid out a number of proposals to address these and future public health challenges, and we look forward to working with him and the Legislature throughout this session to achieve these laudable goals.
Gov. Cuomo is right: Our state faces its most severe economic crisis in memory. HANYS will work with the governor and the Legislature to protect our healthcare providers, their workforce and patients’ access to care as, together, we emerge from this crisis and build a stronger New York.
We have learned much from the COVID-19 pandemic that can help us build that better future. Telehealth has played an essential role in providing uninterrupted, safe and effective care during the COVID-19 pandemic, thanks in large part to emergency flexibilities granted by Gov. Cuomo and our healthcare providers’ rapid actions to scale up these services. HANYS has long advocated for greater telehealth flexibility and we are pleased Gov. Cuomo has pledged to permanently expand access to telehealth for all New Yorkers. These key reforms and continued investments will remove barriers to care, support providers’ continued ramp-up of telehealth offerings and improve patient outcomes. We thank Gov. Cuomo for his commitment to ‘push telehealth to the next level’ in New York state.
About HANYS
The Healthcare Association of New York State is New York’s statewide hospital and continuing care association, representing nonprofit and public hospitals, nursing homes, home care agencies and other healthcare organizations. HANYS is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to advance the health of individuals and communities by providing leadership, representation and service to healthcare providers and systems across the entire continuum of care.
