Category: Health Care

WABC 7: Coronavirus News: Immigrants hit hard by COVID-19 pandemic

  By , , , , , , , , , , , ,

By Eyewitness News

Originally published by WABC on April 16, 2020

NEW YORK (WABC) — Immigrants are among the hardest hit groups by the coronavirus pandemic, as they often live in large households where social distancing is difficult.

Additionally, experts say many face economic challenges made even harder by COVID-19.

It’s anything but business as usual around New York City, and on 37th Avenue in Queens, there are shuttered storefronts including the small grocery stores that are the lifeline to these communities.

“Many of these supermarkets are owned and run by immigrants, and so they are the frontline workers,” City Council member Daniel Dromm said. “And many of them themselves have become sick.”

The virus has ravaged the immigrant community both physically and financially, and 22-year-old Lizbeth Huitzil and her family are struggling just to find food and pay for it.

“My parents are currently not working,” she said. “It’s very hard to keep up with food, utilities, basically all the bills.”

And unlike others who will receive stimulus checks from the government, undocumented immigrants — many whom pay taxes — will not receive any assistance. Advocates are now launching a new campaign with the hashtag #ShareMyCheck so others who receive money might donate some.

They say immigrants can’t afford to stay home and have to go out, risking their lives, because they need to provide food for their families.

An additional problem is housing. Once patients who recover leave the hospital, they have no where to convalesce except their crowded, illegally converted apartments where the virus could spread.

“There is no place for them to go, to socially isolate, when you’re living in conditions like that,” Dromm said.

He says Mayor Bill de Blasio has set aside some hotel rooms for people leaving Elmhurst Hospital, but that it will not be enough.

Meanwhile, families like the Huitzils are scraping by and praying for the help they desperately need.

Make the Road New York is raising money for its COVID-19 Emergency Response Fund to provide direct support to the most vulnerable workers and low-income immigrant families, and to organize to ensure they are not left out of government solutions. Click here for more information or to donate.

Read more here.

HuffPost: ‘Too Much Death’: This NYC Councilman Says He’s Lost 8 Friends To COVID

  By , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Daniel Dromm’s district in Queens has become one of the epicenters of the pandemic in New York City, which itself is the epicenter of the virus in the world.

.

By Christopher Mathias

Originally published in the Huffington Post on April 15, 2020

NEW YORK — As the coronavirus pandemic has ravaged New York City, so far killing over 10,000 people, it’s laid bare the harsh racial and social inequities in the five boroughs.

About 80% of the city’s frontline workers — grocery store cashiers, nurses, bus drivers, food delivery drivers — are Black or Latino. Look at a map of where they live in the city, and then compare it to a map of the most concentrated outbreaks of COVID-19, and you’ll see many of the same neighborhoods highlighted in red.

One of the hardest-hit working-class neighborhoods is Jackson Heights in Queens — one of the most diverse places on the planet. Daniel Dromm, who’s represented the neighborhood for 10 years in the city council, tweeted earlier this month that he’d already lost five friends in the pandemic, underscoring the desperate situation there.

WILLIAM ALATRISTE FOR NEW YORK CITY COUNCIL
Daniel Dromm, who represents Jackson Heights in Queens, says he’s lost eight friends in the pandemic.

Dromm talked to HuffPost about the growing food emergency in his community, how Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) needs to release people in state prisons now, the need for rent relief, and how, sadly, he’s lost even more friends over the last couple of weeks.

You call your district the “epicenter of the epicenter.” What makes your district specifically so vulnerable to all this? 

Well, we have a lot of service workers that live here, undocumented folks that live here, immigrants who are here, and oftentimes, we see that those folks are of lower income, and in order to survive, they have to live in overcrowded, illegally converted homes, which only makes the spread of COVID worse. So there’s really no place for many people who live in my community to self-isolate because sometimes they live 20 to 25 people in a house. We’ve seen this on numerous occasions here in the district.

So that closeness and that density in the neighborhood is, I think, one of the major contributing factors to COVID. Now, even those of us who are as fortunate as I am, I have a one-bedroom apartment for myself, there’s still the density of the neighborhood so that when you walk down on 37th Avenue, which is kind of like one of the main strips in Jackson Heights, it’s very hard to not bump into somebody or meet somebody that wants to talk.

That was always the case before COVID and in a sense, it was very quaint, very nice, because it’s kind of like a small town in the big city. But of course, that type of interaction between people as well is another contributing factor to the spread of COVID.

So something that for years we liked about the neighborhood, which was that social gathering and connections, now we’re being forced to socially distance, and that’s something we in Jackson Heights and Elmhurst are unfamiliar with. And so I think the density, the poverty, the lack of health care, all of those things have been contributing factors to the spread of the virus.

What is the most urgent thing your constituents need from the state or federal government that they’re not getting right now? 

So it’s kind of changed a little bit. Elmhurst Hospital seems to be a little bit better off than it was. Not much, because every single bed is taken — 545 beds taken at Elmhurst. But my on-the-ground type of feeling is that people now are seeking food.

A number of the supermarkets in the neighborhood had closed down, including Patel brothers, two Asian supermarkets on Broadway, most of the fruit stands and food stores along 37th Avenue closed down, so people were short of food simply by virtue of stores closing, but then again on top of that, you have those who can’t even afford it anymore because they’ve lost their job.

DAVID DEE DELGADO VIA GETTY IMAGES
Dozens of people stand in line outside of Seatide Fish & Lobster market to purchase fish on Good Friday on April 10, 2020, in Jackson Heights, Queens.

So people like taxicab drivers — I have a large constituency of cab drivers — they’re not really working anymore. Many of them are undocumented and don’t have access to SNAP benefits. So food has become last week’s and this week’s biggest issue to conquer. I was lucky that working with Grow NYC, I was able to get 300 boxes of food to be distributed at the United Sherpa Society started this week, and that’s going to last for another 12 weeks.

So finding food and getting access to food is an issue. And then even those who are fortunate enough to have an income or be able to pay for food are facing very, very long lines outside the supermarket, sometimes a block or two long, just waiting to get into the supermarkets that are open. So that is a big issue at this point.

Is there anything that D.C. or Cuomo in Albany can do to alleviate that problem?

So actually, I’m going to be having a conference call with Sen. [Chuck] Schumer and Sen. [Kirsten] Gillibrand and a few of the congressional delegates tomorrow, and that’s my major concern that I’m going to raise is, particularly for undocumented communities who are not eligible for SNAP benefits, what type of provisions are being made for them?

And also a number of food banks have closed in the area — because, one, of the volunteer shortage and two, because of the lack of food availability, but what type of provisions are going to be made for that?

So you were talking before about how this pandemic has kind of unmasked a lot of racial and economic inequalities that were already there, that maybe people in other neighborhoods or districts weren’t paying attention to. Being in the epicenter of the epicenter of this crisis, has it changed your worldview at all? Are there bigger changes that need to be made after all this is over? 

Yes, absolutely. I think what we have to do is really come to a realization: Who are our essential workers? OK. These folks that live in my district are the essential workers during this COVID crisis. They’re the aides in the hospitals, they’re the people who are doing the work in the restaurants. They’re the folks who are driving the buses and operating the trains. And so, you know, oftentimes when people think about essential workers, maybe they think of an elected official, maybe they think of some rich guy in Manhattan, whatever. But really what it comes down to are these people, our community, both documented and undocumented, who are risking their lives on a daily basis for everyone else, and to me, that’s something that’s really jumped out at me.

These delivery men, these delivery men who bring us our takeout orders. They’re essential, OK? They are essential to us and to the economy. And we have to look at that and in the future reward them with paid time off, sick days, etc., because we realize now how essential they are.

Gov. Cuomo has gotten a lot of accolades, and his poll numbers are up, and I was wondering if you thought that was deserved? 

You know, I have a real policy difference with Gov. Cuomo on the issue of how he has treated our New York state prisoners. They’re some of the most vulnerable people in the whole state because they are packed into prisons with very, very little to prevent the virus. They don’t have enough soap, they don’t have enough sanitizer, they don’t have masks, and the most insulting part of it is that the staff does! The corrections officers have that and have access to that but the poor people who are stuck in jail, don’t have access to any of that.

And like Rikers Island, I think today had 383 cases of COVID among the detainees, and I make a differentiation there between detainee and inmates because they haven’t been convicted yet, but upstate, upstate is where the governor has control, and he has done nothing, and he shot down reporters.

So I plead with the governor, to please release the — especially the elderly people who are in prison, and those who are near the end of their term, to release them from prison, because they should not be getting a death sentence simply because they are packed into these prisons. And ultimately, that’s what’s going to happen if we don’t deal with this issue immediately.

OK. And just to be clear, you’re saying he should release elderly people and people near the end of their term but would you even go further than that?

I would. I would look at all records of people who could potentially be eligible for relief. Because very few people in New York state prisons are on life terms, and there’s no death penalty, but by leaving them in prison at this point, you know, it’s really a matter of saving their lives. And so, the whole thing needs to be examined and we need a real change there. And overall, I think he has shown a lot of leadership, but this is one of the things that I think just sticks out in my mind. They have nowhere to go and it just to be looked at.

There’ve been some reports about there being an outbreak among homeless shelters at the moment, and also in NYCHA residences. What solutions do you see for those problems? 

Well, yeah, I mean, it’s very similar to the issue that we’re facing here in terms of overcrowding, within our immigrant community, and I’ve been pushing the mayor for about two and a half weeks now to open up these hotels and get people into hotels. There are enough hotels probably to house, I don’t know how many people really because I don’t have a grip on that, but to have a lot of people, let me put it that way.

And there’s been some hesitancy on the part of the De Blasio administration in that direction, although now they are finally moving in that direction…

The other thing I’m seeing here in the community is people who are in Elmhurst Hospital, they’ve been taken in because they have severe symptoms of the virus, or they have for four or five days, maybe a little longer, but then they’re released but they have no place to go to convalesce. So you know, they go back to their overcrowded conditions where somebody else is infected and who knows, they could infect somebody else or whatever. And in some instances where people don’t even want them back into the overcrowded homes to begin with.

So we’ve been working with Mitch Katz, the head of Health and Hospitals, to at least get those folks who are being released with nowhere to go, to be aware that there is now going to be implemented this program of the availability of a hotel room for a period of convalescence. So that is supposed to be happening as of today.

What needs to be done that’s not being done when it comes to rent?

I think we have to have a rent freeze and the mayor has called for that by the Rent Guidelines Board, and I think there need to be some federal dollars because even if we have a rent freeze, it’s still not going to protect those tenants if they can’t catch up for three, six, eight, nine months, whatever it may be. To expect them then to pay back all that rent when they don’t have an income or haven’t had an income is going to be a very hard burden, particularly on my constituents, but on anybody who finds themselves in that type of situation. So a rent freeze and some type of federal balance to help with the payment of rents.

And so on April 1, you tweeted that you’ve lost five friends to the virus, and I’m very sorry for your loss.

Thank you.

And I hate to ask, but has that number grown since? 

Yeah, yep. I’d say it’s about — of personal friends — eight or nine now. [Editor’s note: It’s eight people. Their names are Lorena Borjas, Priscilla Carrow, Father Antonio Checo, Tarlach MacNiallais, Anne Quashen, Joe Hennessy, Gloria Lippman, and Joe Forman.]

Which is just incredible. And then, of course, I’m the councilman for the area and I’ve heard about, you know, at least two dozen, maybe almost 30 people in the community who have died.

JIM BURKE
LGBT activist Anne Quashen, right, seen here celebrating shortly before the 2019 Queens Pride Parade kick-off in Jackson Heights, Queens, recently died of the coronavirus.

I just found out this morning that a woman who lives in my building complex, not in my exact building, but within the complex, her name is Gloria Lippman, she died last night. She was only 75 years old. But, you know, I used to see her in the neighborhood all the time. She’d go [puts on thick New York accent] “Dannyyy! How are youuu?”

So you know, I hear of maybe one [death] a day. And it’s just too much death. It’s just too much death for anyone to bear.

Well, that was my next question. How are you bearing it? Like, what kind of toll is it taking on you?

I try to keep moving forward. One of the people who was in the original batch of five when I tweeted that out, his name was Tarlach MacNiallais, and he was a member of the St. Pat’s For All Parade, you know, the inclusive St. Patrick’s Parade that we have here in Sunnyside, Queens. So I think that one kind of hit me the hardest because he was the one who was I was closest to.

But I also just lost one of the founding members of PFLAG Queens. Her name is Anne Quashen. She was older, she was 88. And she died on Friday afternoon.

So it’s hard to say, you know, I just keep going forward because that’s all you can do, you know. And what makes it worse is that there’s no grieving period that, you know, you can get together with people and hug and console each other.

For Tarlach, we did an online or a virtual funeral, and a virtual Irish funeral, which went on for six hours. … There were people from Ireland on it, so … at least you can see people that might not otherwise be able to fly here, but you realize how important those things are, you know, to the grieving process. And so without it, all you can do is just keep going and, you know, try to get up each day and do what you can to get to the end of this.

Do you see a light at the end of the tunnel now? Are we at that point? 

Well, I’m always optimistic. You know, I like to say I survived one crisis, the AIDS crisis or the AIDS epidemic, right, and we survived other things as well. 9/11 and other catastrophes. … I’m of the age of Vietnam. I didn’t go to Vietnam, you know, but that was a disaster. I remember the oil crisis where you couldn’t get oil [for] your cars.

Eventually, we came out of all of that, and it’s part of our lived experience. So, yeah, I’m hopeful. You know, I think we’ll get through this and maybe even be more united as a community, and maybe people will stop sometimes being so ugly, but that’s what I’m hoping.

Yeah, and then the last question, when this is all over and we’re back to life as normal, when you kind of imagine that situation, what’s the first thing you do to enjoy yourself as a New Yorker?

I’m going to go to a Broadway show. [Laughs.] When I heard that the Broadway theaters weren’t gonna open ’til June 7, I thought, ‘Oh my God, that’s a gay man’s nightmare.’

I always love my art and my theater and stuff like that. It kind of makes life worth living. So I’m really looking forward to that.

Read more here.

Bond Buyer: Coronavirus colors New York City Council’s budget response

  By , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

By Chip Barnett

Originally published in the Bond Buyer on April 8, 2020

The New York City Council issued its response to Mayor Bill de Blasio’s $95.3 billion fiscal 2021 preliminary budget, focusing on supporting the social safety net as the coronavirus has ravaged the city and its finances.

“The impact of COVID-19 on our economy has been much like the effect of the virus itself — sudden and with a quick decline,” Council Speaker Corey Johnson, Council Finance Committee Chair Daniel Dromm and Capital Budget Subcommittee Chair Vanessa Gibson said in a joint letter released late Tuesday.

The preliminary fiscal 2021 budget was released by the mayor three months ago, when the city was a drastically different place, the council members said.

The council said its response contains what it deems are essential programs and services that must be retained.

“We recognize that revenues are decreasing because of severely reduced business activity, deferred tax collections, and a sharp drop in tourism. And we understand that a substantial amount of resources will be needed to combat the spread of coronavirus and to protect the health and safety of our people and the heroic essential workers,” the Council members said. “However, as we make the tough decisions about where to find savings and efficiencies, it is imperative that the basic social safety net programs remain untouched, and in some cases expanded with additional investments.”

The Council members said it was crucial that both the city and the state continue to press the federal government for additional stimulus and recovery funding.

“The city’s ability to stabilize its economy, help the tens of thousands of newly unemployed or underemployed workers, provide loans to small businesses, and pay for the public health response to the virus hinges on federal assistance,” the Council members said.

De Blasio released the $95.3 billion fiscal 2021 preliminary budget in January and the council held the first round of hearings on the budget.

The mayor will release his revised executive budget later this month. The 51-member council will hold a second round of hearings, after which they will negotiate adjustments with the mayor.

The mayor said the council’s response would be looked at closely.

“We are in an unprecedented crisis and facing billions of dollars in lost revenue. There is no doubt this budget cycle will be painful,” said Laura Feyer, the mayor’s deputy press secretary. “We are laser focused on fighting COVID-19 and protecting the health and safety of all New Yorkers. We are reviewing the Council’s proposals.”

By law, the council must vote on a budget by July 1. The last four budgets were all approved ahead of schedule.

New York City Council Speaker Corey Johnson, left and finance chair Daniel Dromm, right, joined capital budget subcommittee Chair Vanessa Gibson in signing the letter to the mayor.William Alatriste

Last month, the mayor said the budget will be on time despite the spread of COVID-19 forcing $1.3 billion of cost-cutting measures.

The council called on the administration to:

  • Continue to prioritize and maintain services that focus on the prevention and identification of infectious diseases; provide needed mental health supports; address health disparities in the city’s communities of color that cause an excess burden of ill health and premature mortality; support the full range of health services; and conduct surveillance of environmental-related diseases.
  • Invest at least $25 million in food pantries, expand all feeding programs, and increase food allowances for all emergency housing programs. With the drop in employment, thousands more New Yorkers are food insecure.
  • Ensure that every older adult who requests a meal receives one and to adequately fund the enhanced need for senior services.
  • Fund a robust rental voucher program, move families out of shelters into vacant units, invest in homeless street solutions, and expand anti-eviction services, and preserve NYCHA’s affordable housing stock.
  • Continue to support human services providers by ensuring that workers feel protected, safe, and properly compensated; that contracts reflect the increased costs associated with COVID-19; and that agencies allow flexibility in contract scope and services.
  • Support a rent relief and deferral program for adversely impacted families and implement tax deferral programs for struggling homeowners and small property owners.
  • Implement measures to stabilize the small business community. Businesses have certain bills that need to be paid whether or not they are operating, such as rent, utilities, loan payments, insurance costs, and taxes.

“The upcoming budget negotiations will involve many tough choices, but it is clear that there are certain basic items that should remain protected, including investments in public health and the social safety net,” Johnson said. “This is a crisis unlike any we have ever seen, but I believe in New York City.”

The council’s finance chair said average New Yorkers need the city as a backup in these trying times.

“The city must deliver for the thousands of New Yorkers who rely on our social safety net in this time of great need. The COVID-19 pandemic has presented an unprecedented challenge to our city and to the budgeting process,” Dromm said. “There is a lot of uncertainty but one thing is clear: services that keep New Yorkers housed, fed, healthy and open for business should remain strong. Because the need for many of these services will only grow in the coming months, New York City needs to prioritize them to the fullest extent possible so that no one falls through the cracks.”

The city is one of the largest issuers of municipal debt in the United States. As of the end of the second quarter of fiscal 2020, the city had about $37.7 billion of general obligation debt outstanding. That’s not counting the various city authorities that issue debt.

Moody’s Investors Service rates the city’s GOs Aa1, but has placed the rating on negative review. S&P Global Ratings and Fitch Ratings rate the city’s GOs AA.

The NYC Transitional Finance Authority has $38.9 billion of debt outstanding while the NYC Municipal Water Finance Authority has $30.8 billion of debt outstanding.

Read more here.

Driving Forces on WBAI: New York in Crisis – WBAI’s Coronavirus Diary, Episode 1

  By , , , , , ,

By Celeste Katz Marston

Original published by WBAI on April 3, 2020

New York is the epicenter of the coronavirus pandemic sweeping the planet. The battle against the virus has profoundly changed Americans’ way of life. For some, it means death. WBAI’s Celeste Katz Marston is collecting the stories of New Yorkers fighting their way through the storm. Episode 1: New York City Council Member Danny Dromm.

See more here.

NY1: Why There’s New Pressure to Allow Blood Donations From Gay & Bisexual Men

  By , , , , , ,

By Emily Ngo

Originally published by Spectrum News NY1 on March 31, 2020

NEW YORK – The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has put out an urgent call for blood donors as the spread of coronavirus threatens the nation’s supply. But men who’ve had sex with men are still barred from answering that call.
Brad Hoylman is New York’s only openly gay state senator. He and others want the ban lifted in the name of saving lives.​

“I take it very personally as a citizen. I want to do my part during this pandemic to help other people. And unfortunately, I can’t,” Hoylman said.

Currently, gay and bisexual men can only give blood if they’ve been celibate for one year.

The policy is meant to keep HIV out of the blood pool. But HIV isn’t limited to gay people. And all blood donations are screened for it.

“Now, we do have ways where you can detect whether or not the blood is HIV-infected or not. So this is a very old-fashioned, discriminatory practice and it needs to be changed,” said City Councilman and LGBT Caucus Chair Daniel Dromm.

The Red Cross says recently canceled blood drives have meant 325,000 fewer donations at a time of great need.

The FDA told NY1 that its policy on gay donors stands, but it’s “actively considering the situation as the outbreak progresses.”

Meanwhile, there’s another consideration.

An openly gay survivor of COVID-19, like City Council Member Ritchie Torres, wouldn’t be able to donate blood and plasma for the purposes of combating the virus.

“We should have the ability to extract antibodies from the blood of LGBTQ survivors and give those antibodies to those who are sick in the hopes of fighting the infection and aiding their recovery. That to me is a matter of life and death,” Torres said.

Elizabeth Warren, Bernie Sanders and other U.S. senators have written the FDA to urge policies based on individual risk factors, not ones that rule out an entire community.

Hoylman also wrote the FDA.

He said gay men would contribute an additional 600,000 blood donations.

“The other part I would add about the one-year abstinence: It suggests something very nefarious about gay men and our personal lives that I just reject outright. And I think it’s time that the science dictate policy, not homophobia,” Hoylman said.

See more here.

Washington Post: This New York hospital has become ‘the epicenter of the epicenter’ of the coronavirus outbreak

  By , , , , , , , ,


By Alden Nusser and Joyce Koh

Originally published in the Washington Post on March 26, 2020.

At Elmhurst Hospital in Queens, 13 people died from coronavirus in just 24 hours. Inside, ventilators and protective gear are in short supply; outside, people with symptoms line up to wait for treatment, and the howl of ambulances can be heard at all hours.

See more here.

Queens Daily Eagle: Dromm, Council call on state to fund sickle cell care

  By , , , ,

COUNCILMEMBER DANIEL DROMM SPONSORED A RESOLUTION CALLING ON STATE LAWMAKERS TO PASS LEGISLATION FUNDING SICKLE CELL CARE AND TRAINING. 

By David Brand

Originally published by the Queens Daily Eagle on March 2, 2020

Three Queens lawmakers have led the state and city to effort bolster treatment for sickle cell disease, prompting the city council on Thursday to press Albany to pass funding bills this legislative session.

Councilmember Daniel Dromm, of Jackson Heights, sponsored a resolution urging state lawmakers to pass legislation that would coordinate services, boost community outreach and establish mental health services. The legislation was introduced by State Sen James Sanders and Assemblymember Alicia Hyndman, both of Southeast Queens.

“Sickle cell disease is a public health crisis,” Dromm said. “Sickle-cell related conditions highlight health disparities in our system as communities of color are disproportionately affected.”

Sickle cell disease is a hereditary condition characterized by crescent-shaped red blood cells — resembling sickles — that block the flow of oxygen to vital organs through the bloodstream. The condition causes bouts of excruciating and eventually, death. Women with sickle cell have an average life expectancy of 42; men, 38.

The illness almost exclusively affects people of African descent, leading to treatment disparities informed by racism and poverty. People with sickle cell disease — mostly black or African American — are less likely to have health insurance or access to consistent and adequate medical care.

About 10,000 people in New York City are diagnosed with sickle cell disease, according to the Centers for Disease Control.

Read more here.

Queens County Politics: Dromm Resolution Battling Sickle Cell Disease Passes Council

  By , , ,

By Queens County Politics staff

Originally published in Queens County Politics on March 1, 2020

City Council Member Daniel Dromm (D-Jackson Heights, Elmhurst), saw the city council yesterday overwhelming pass his Resolution 335A calling upon the State Legislature to pass and fully fund, and the Governor to sign, A.6493/S.2281, which would improve the care of sickle cell disease patients and educate about sickle cell trait.

Specifically, the state legislation would establish eight demonstration programs throughout New York State and one coordinating center to battle the disease.

Sickle-cell related conditions highlight health disparities in our system as communities of color are disproportionately affected. New York falls behind other states in rectifying this problem by fully funding the programs needed to enhance outcomes and quality of life for those with sickle cell disease.

Recognizing the need for the state to launch a coordinated effort to tackle this health challenge, Senator James Sanders (D-Queens) and Assemblywoman Alicia Hyndman (D-Queens) introduced A.6493/S.2281.

“Sickle cell disease is a public health crisis,” said Dromm. “Thousands of New Yorkers have either sickle cell trait or sickle cell disease. Sickle-cell related conditions highlight health disparities in our system as communities of color are disproportionately affected.  A large effort is needed to meet this serious issue head-on and to address the myriad of concerns that have arisen.”

Read more here.

Bond Buyer: Podcast – Tale of two budgets

  By , , ,

By Paul Burton

Originally published by the Bond Buyer on January 21, 2020

New York City Council member Daniel Dromm and Citizens Budget Commission president Andrew Rein explore the effects of looming state Medicaid cuts on the city’s $95.3 billion preliminary budget. Paul Burton hosts from City Hall.

Paul Burton
Paul Burton is the Northeast Regional Editor for The Bond Buyer and the author of the book “Tales from the Newsrooms.” He is a sought-after public speaker and has appeared on radio and TV shows, including former CBS News White House correspondent Sharyl Attkisson’s public-affairs program, “Full Measure.”

Read more here.

POLITICO: Intersex bill gets introduced

  By , , , , , ,

By Amanda Eisenberg

Originally published by Politico on October 17, 2019

The city health department will be required to implement a public information and outreach campaign around medically unnecessary treatment for infants born with intersex traits, under a new bill to be introduced at Thursday’s Council meeting. The term “intersex” relates to about 1.7 percent of the population that is born with varied physical sex characteristics, chromosomes and hormones. “Sometimes I think there is a misclassification of intersex people,” said Council Member Daniel Dromm (D-Queens), who sponsored the legislation.

… The legislation, which does not yet have a bill number, aims to educate parents about intersex traits and promote evolving medical standards for how young children are treated. “The recommendation in this bill is a crucial step forward to protect intersex young people in New York,” said Alesdair Ittelson, director of law and policy for interACT, an organization that promotes human rights and policy work for intersex people. “These questions are presented as surgical emergencies for the child when in reality they are social emergencies for the caregivers who require affirmation and support in the recognition that their children are perfect as they are.”

Read more here.