NY State Senate Bill 2009-S2750

Senate Bill S2750

2009-2010 Legislative Session

Provides for cost of living and marriage penalty adjustments to eligibility standards for the program for elderly pharmaceutical insurance coverage

download bill text pdf

Archive: Last Bill Status - In Senate Committee Finance Committee

Introduced
- In Committee Assembly
- In Committee Senate
- On Floor Calendar Assembly
- On Floor Calendar Senate
- Passed Assembly
- Passed Senate
Delivered to Governor
Signed By Governor

Please enter your contact information

First Name

Last Name

Email Address

A valid email address is required.

Home address is used to determine the senate district in which you reside. Your support or opposition to this bill is then shared immediately with the senator who represents you.

Optional services from the NY State Senate:

Create an account. An account allows you to officially support or oppose key legislation, sign petitions with a single click, and follow issues, committees, and bills that matter to you. When you create an account, you agree to this platform's terms of participation.

Include a custom message for your Senator? (Optional)

Enter a message to your senator. Many New Yorkers use this to share the reasoning behind their support or opposition to the bill. Others might share a personal anecdote about how the bill would affect them or people they care about.

Actions

View Actions

	Assembly Actions - Lowercase Senate Actions - UPPERCASE
Mar 08, 2010	reported and committed to finance
Jan 06, 2010	referred to aging
Mar 02, 2009	referred to aging

Votes

- Mar 8, 2010 - Aging Committee Vote
  S2750
  
  11
  
  Aye
  
  0
  
  Nay
  
  1
  
  Aye with Reservations
  
  0
  
  Absent
  
  0
  
  Excused
  
  0
  
  Abstained
  - - Aging Committee Vote: Mar 8, 2010
      
      aye (11)
      
      Addabbo Jr.
      
      Diaz
      
      Farley
      
      Flanagan
      
      Golden
      
      Kruger
      
      Oppenheimer
      
      Ranzenhofer
      
      Savino
      
      Serrano
      
      Stavisky
      
      aye wr (1)
      
      LaValle

co-Sponsors

View additional co-sponsors

2009-S2750 (ACTIVE) - Details

See Assembly Version of this Bill:: A3697
Current Committee:: Senate Finance
Law Section:: Elder Law
Laws Affected:: Amd §254, Eld L
Versions Introduced in Other Legislative Sessions:: 2011-2012: S2172, A4136
2013-2014: A5050
2015-2016: A2609
2017-2018: A1363
2019-2020: A2065

2009-S2750 (ACTIVE) - Summary

Provides for cost-of-living and marriage penalty adjustments to eligibility standards for the program for elderly pharmaceutical insurance coverage.

2009-S2750 (ACTIVE) - Sponsor Memo

                                 BILL NUMBER:  S2750

 TITLE OF BILL :
An act to amend the elder law, in relation to cost of living and
marriage penalty adjustments to eligibility standards for the program
for elderly pharmaceutical insurance coverage


 PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF THE BILL :
To eliminate the marriage penalty currently existing in the schedules
for EPIC registration fees and personal covered drug expenditures
(deductions).

 SUMMARY OF PROVISIONS :
The bill amends section 254 of the elder law (EPIC) by renumbering the
current subsections 1 and 2 for cost of living adjustments as 1(a) and
1(b), and adding a new subsection 2. Marriage penalty adjustment,
which directs the elderly pharmaceutical insurance coverage panel
(consisting of the commissioners of the departments of education and
health, the superintendent of insurance, and the directors of the
state office for the aging and the division of the budget) to adjust
registration fees as follows: first, joint income for a married couple
is defined to mean income divided by two; and second, the panel is
directed to set quarterly registration fees and deductibles for
married couples at a level that is no greater than the fees and
deductibles for individuals of comparable income.

 JUSTIFICATION :
Current EPIC schedules for registration fee and deductible assume that
a married couple has greater resources than a single person, but with
the rising costs of drugs, it is no longer true--if it ever was--that
two can pay medical costs, when all other bills are accounted for, as
cheaply as one. This legislation recognizes the important role played
in the setting of fees and deductibles by the EPIC panel, and uses
that mechanism to require adjustments.

The current fee and deductible schedule produce on average, fees for
married that are 150%-200% more than fees for singles, and deductibles
that, on average and where comparable, are 160% - 165% more than
singles.

 LEGISLATIVE HISTORY :
2005-2006 - S.2971: Aging, Finance

2007-2008 - S.118: Aging, Finance

 FISCAL IMPLICATIONS :
To be determined.

 EFFECTIVE DATE :
April 1, after it becomes law.

2009-S2750 (ACTIVE) - Bill Text download pdf

                            
                    S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
________________________________________________________________________

                                  2750

                       2009-2010 Regular Sessions

                            I N  S E N A T E

                              March 2, 2009
                               ___________

Introduced  by Sens. GOLDEN, ALESI, DeFRANCISCO, LANZA, LARKIN, MAZIARZ,
  NOZZOLIO, PADAVAN, SALAND, SEWARD, SKELOS -- read  twice  and  ordered
  printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Aging

AN  ACT  to  amend  the  elder  law,  in  relation to cost of living and
  marriage penalty adjustments to eligibility standards for the  program
  for elderly pharmaceutical insurance coverage

  THE  PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND ASSEM-
BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

  Section 1. Section 254 of the elder law is amended to read as follows:
  S 254. ADJUSTMENTS. 1. Cost of  living  adjustment.  [1.]  (A)  Within
amounts  appropriated,  the  panel  shall adjust the program eligibility
standards set forth in subdivision two of section two hundred  forty-two
of this title to account for increases in the cost of living.
  [2.]  (B)  The  panel shall further adjust individual and joint income
categories set forth in subdivisions two and four of section two hundred
forty-eight of this title to conform to the adjustments made pursuant to
THIS subdivision [one of this section].
  2. MARRIAGE PENALTY  ADJUSTMENT.    THE  PANEL  SHALL  FURTHER  ADJUST
INCOME,  REGISTRATION FEES, DEDUCTIBLES, AND OTHER PROGRAM COMPONENTS TO
ELIMINATE THE ELIMINATION OF THE EPIC MARRIAGE PENALTY, AS FOLLOWS:
  (A) FOR PURPOSES OF SUBDIVISIONS TWO AND FOUR OF SECTIONS TWO  HUNDRED
FORTY-SEVEN  AND  TWO  HUNDRED  FORTY-EIGHT  OF THIS TITLE, JOINT INCOME
SHALL BE DEFINED AS INCOME, AS SUCH  TERM  IS  DEFINED  IN  SECTION  TWO
HUNDRED  FORTY-ONE OF THIS TITLE AND AS ADJUSTED PURSUANT TO SUBDIVISION
ONE OF THIS ACTION, DIVIDED BY TWO.
  (B) THE QUARTERLY REGISTRATION FEE ESTABLISHED PURSUANT TO SECTION TWO
HUNDRED FORTY-SEVEN OF THIS TITLE, AND  THE  LIMITS  ON  POINT  OF  SALE
CO-PAYMENTS ESTABLISHED PURSUANT TO SUBDIVISION FOUR OF SUCH SECTION, AS
SUCH  ITEMS MAY BE OR HAVE BEEN ADJUSTED BY THE PANEL PURSUANT TO SUBDI-
VISION ONE OF THIS SECTION AND OTHER SECTIONS OF THIS CHAPTER, FOR  EACH
MARRIED  INDIVIDUAL  PROGRAM PARTICIPANT SHALL BE SET AT A LEVEL THAT IS

 EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                      [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                           LBD06339-03-9

S. 2750                             2

NOT GREATER THAN THE QUARTERLY REGISTRATION FEE AND THE LIMIT  ON  POINT
OF  SALE CO-PAYMENTS FOR UNMARRIED INDIVIDUAL PROGRAM PARTICIPANTS WHOSE
INCOME EQUALS JOINT INCOME AS DEFINED IN PARAGRAPH (A) OF THIS  SUBDIVI-
SION.
  (C)  THE  ANNUAL  PERSONAL  COVERED DRUG EXPENDITURES FOR EACH MARRIED
INDIVIDUAL ELIGIBLE PROGRAM PARTICIPANT ESTABLISHED PURSUANT TO  SECTION
TWO  HUNDRED FORTY-EIGHT OF THIS TITLE AS ADJUSTED BY THE PANEL PURSUANT
TO SUBDIVISION ONE OF THIS SECTION AND OTHER SECTIONS OF  THIS  CHAPTER,
SHALL  BE  SET  BY  THE  PANEL  AT  A LEVEL WHICH IS NO GREATER THAN THE
PERSONAL COVERED DRUG EXPENDITURES  FOR  UNMARRIED  INDIVIDUAL  ELIGIBLE
PROGRAM  PARTICIPANTS  WHOSE INCOME, AS ADJUSTED PURSUANT TO SUBDIVISION
ONE OF THIS SECTION, EQUALS JOINT INCOME AS ADJUSTED PURSUANT  TO  PARA-
GRAPH (A) OF THIS SUBDIVISION.
  (D)  THE  LIMITS  ON POINT OF SALE CO-PAYMENTS ESTABLISHED PURSUANT TO
SUBDIVISION FOUR OF SECTIONS TWO HUNDRED  FORTY-SEVEN  AND  TWO  HUNDRED
FORTY-EIGHT OF THIS TITLE, AS ADJUSTED BY THE PANEL PURSUANT TO SUBDIVI-
SION  ONE  OF  THIS SECTION AND OTHER SECTIONS OF THIS CHAPTER, FOR EACH
MARRIED INDIVIDUAL PROGRAM PARTICIPANT SHALL BE SET AT A LEVEL  THAT  IS
NO  GREATER  THAN  THE  LIMIT ON POINT OF SALE CO-PAYMENTS FOR UNMARRIED
INDIVIDUAL PROGRAM PARTICIPANTS WHOSE  INCOME  EQUALS  JOINT  INCOME  AS
DEFINED IN PARAGRAPH (A) OF THIS SUBDIVISION.
  (E)  THE PANEL SHALL MAKE THE ADJUSTMENTS REQUIRED BY THIS SUBDIVISION
ON A FOUR-YEAR SCHEDULE WHICH IT SHALL ADOPT AFTER CONSULTATION WITH THE
DIVISION OF THE BUDGET BEGINNING WITH THE FISCAL  YEAR  NEXT  SUCCEEDING
THE DATE ON WHICH THIS SUBDIVISION SHALL HAVE BECOME EFFECTIVE.
  S  2. This act shall take effect on the first of April next succeeding
the date on which it shall have become a law.

Comments

Open Legislation is a forum for New York State legislation. All comments are subject to review and community moderation is encouraged.

Comments deemed off-topic, commercial, campaign-related, self-promotional; or that contain profanity, hate or toxic speech; or that link to sites outside of the nysenate.gov domain are not permitted, and will not be published. Attempts to intimidate and silence contributors or deliberately deceive the public, including excessive or extraneous posting/posts, or coordinated activity, are prohibited and may result in the temporary or permanent banning of the user. Comment moderation is generally performed Monday through Friday. By contributing or voting you agree to the Terms of Participation and verify you are over 13.

Create an account. An account allows you to sign petitions with a single click, officially support or oppose key legislation, and follow issues, committees, and bills that matter to you. When you create an account, you agree to this platform's terms of participation.