Open Letter to Governor Cuomo
Dear Governor Cuomo,
I have seen many advertisements on television describing tax relief for businesses in an attempt to attract them to New York. Will this work? Virtually every state offers businesses tax relief to attract them, and many of these states, especially those with very conservative political leaders, can offer cuts at least as great as New York’s. These states literally don’t care if their citizens live or die, as shown by the rejection of Medicaid expansion, and so they don’t worry about how low government services have to sink when taxes shrink. Competing with them as taxes head to the bottom will be difficult.
But, there is one way we can compete with them and have a strong advantage. We are willing to help our fellow citizens. Moving through the legislature is the New York State Health bill ( Gottfried/Perkins ) which will provide health care to virtually all New York residents by means of a single payer insurance system. With a single payer system in place, businesses can be attracted to New York with the promise that virtually all of the health care needs of their employees will be met, and that they will be relieved of that obligation. It is unlikely that the conservative states will compete with us by adapting their own single payer systems, and so it is highly unlikely that any state will be able to match this incentive, unless Vermont or California beat us to it.
The choice here is between following the rest of the pack in a race to the bottom, or leading the country in a race to the top. This is a time for real leadership. Please support this bill.
Sincerely,
Alec Pruchnicki, MD
