NY Dems Pass Medical Debt Relief as Progressives Push to Expand Healthcare to Undocumented Residents

In New York, a battle is brewing over a bill called Coverage for All that would use a surplus of federal funds to pay people who are undocumented to enroll in the state’s Essential Plan under the federal Affordable Care Act, potentially granting 250,000 people access to healthcare. Immigrant advocates are rallying for the bill’s inclusion in a two-day special legislative session despite Democratic Governor Kathy Hochul’s resistance, calling the bill a chance for the state to “make history.” We speak to its sponsor, New York Assemblymember Jessica González-Rojas, as well as Elisabeth Benjamin, co-founder of the Health Care for All New York campaign, about the Coverage for All bill, the growing crisis of medical debt, the end of COVID-era Medicaid protections, and the larger fight for universal healthcare.

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