Madmallard
.223 Rem
As such, Cuomo’s plan amounts to a tax on pain. It’s a tax on cancer patients, hospice patients and others suffering from legitimate chronic pain for which only prescription medication can provide relief.
In contrast, distributors have good options for avoiding the tax, namely selling more to the 92% of the US market that isn’t in NY State. Put together, this suggests that consumers will end up bearing the lion’s share of the cost of the tax.
Health insurance will likely get pricier for everyone. Together, private and public insurance pay for over 80% of the total cost of opioids. Private insurers are likely to respond to higher prices by increasing policy premiums and passing additional costs on to consumers in the form of higher out-of-pocket prescription costs.
Since insurance is designed to spread the costs of health care over a large number of people, this means New Yorkers who may never come within a mile of an opioid would pay for the tax through higher insurance premiums. Not only that, but because the state itself purchases so many opioid medicines through Medicaid, New York taxpayers will end up footing the bill for the higher prices. That’s the first loss for New York State.
And rather than help solve New York’s opioid abuse problem, the new Cuomo tax will probably make it worse. That’s the state’s second loss.
Patients will feel the pain of Cuomo's opioid tax
In contrast, distributors have good options for avoiding the tax, namely selling more to the 92% of the US market that isn’t in NY State. Put together, this suggests that consumers will end up bearing the lion’s share of the cost of the tax.
Health insurance will likely get pricier for everyone. Together, private and public insurance pay for over 80% of the total cost of opioids. Private insurers are likely to respond to higher prices by increasing policy premiums and passing additional costs on to consumers in the form of higher out-of-pocket prescription costs.
Since insurance is designed to spread the costs of health care over a large number of people, this means New Yorkers who may never come within a mile of an opioid would pay for the tax through higher insurance premiums. Not only that, but because the state itself purchases so many opioid medicines through Medicaid, New York taxpayers will end up footing the bill for the higher prices. That’s the first loss for New York State.
And rather than help solve New York’s opioid abuse problem, the new Cuomo tax will probably make it worse. That’s the state’s second loss.
Patients will feel the pain of Cuomo's opioid tax
