PRIMARY CARE DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION

Policy, communications, and research & evaluation: high-quality and accessible primary care saves lives and is essential to achieving a strong health care system, yet it continues to be undervalued and underfunded. Pcdc supports policy initiatives that promote health parity by expanding and ensuring access to high-quality primary care. We advocate for policies that increase investment in primary care, improve primary care access, and support and expand the primary care workforce in communities that need it most. Pcdc also conducts research and analysis on the current state of primary care access and health outcomes, informing stronger policies and programs in communities. Highlights of recent policy, communications, and research & evaluation accomplishments include: - drafting and leading campaigns for legislation to increase access to primary care in new york state: pcdc worked closely with lawmakers and with a lobbying firm, to advocate for legislation that would expand and enhance primary care in new york state. In late 2023, pcdc was instrumental in advocating for the introduction of legislation to require insurers in the state to measure their spending on primary care, report it out, and ultimately increase it to at least 12% of their overall health care spending. By the end of december, senator gustavo rivera had introduced senate bill 1197, including all of those elements. Pcdc policy staff worked with assemblymember amy paulin to introduce a same-as bill in the assembly, a8592, and then advocated with lawmakers throughout the session to move the bill forward. The bill passed the senate health committee before the end of session. Pcdc also advocated with the governor's office and the department of health to ensure that all policy relating to health care, including a decision to pursue a new federal model called ahead and a decision to pursue additional tax revenue, prioritized funding for primary care services. Further, pcdc advocated with the legislature to ensure that all health care policy in the new york state budget reflects the need to increase access to high-quality, affordable primary care for all new yorkers. - analyzing state primary care policy trends across the country to encourage policymakers to consider new ideas: in early 2023, pcdc released a report documenting major trends in state policy on primary care across the country, reviewing hundreds of pieces of legislation to find the proposals that held promise for the future of primary care. Over the course of 2023, pcdc staff analyzed that year's legislative session proposals to follow up on that initial report, documenting the continuing trends in some areas, such as primary care investment, as well as new ideas emerging in areas such as expanding the primary care workforce. Pcdc released an update report on those state trends in december 2023. - releasing report and presenting findings on primary care access: pcdc's research & evaluation team released the first new york state primary care scorecard. A first-of-its-kind resource, the scorecard aims to support policy, programmatic and budgetary decision-making by presenting the current state of primary care in new york state. The scorecard is a synthesis of available data (publicly available and proprietary), bringing together a new analysis. The data reported are from the most recent year available and are organized into four domains: workforce, access, performance and health outcomes. - advocating publicly and frequently for improved primary care access: through multiple public comments on regulations, requests for information, and policy proposals, and signing on to letters from other organizations, pcdc lent its voice to multiple policy concerns including investing more in primary care through federal regulations; new payment models for primary care; disparities in primary care access across new york state; policies to ensure the effectiveness of the federal 340b drug pricing program at the federal and state levels; . The goal throughout these activities was to advance policies that increase access to quality primary care, enabling it to more successfully improve health outcomes, reduce costs, and improve overall health in our communities.