Dear Payor/Provider: NYS Health Care Reform Act (HCRA) Surcharges and Assessments

February 12, 2009

Dear Payor:

This letter provides notice of statutory changes included in the recent passage of Governor Paterson's Deficit Reduction Plan that will impact your HCRA Covered-Lives Assessment obligations.

The Covered-Lives Assessments applicable to third-party payors who have elected to pay their HCRA surcharge obligations directly to the State's HCRA Pool Administrator are being revised to reflect enacted increases in the applicable Professional Education Pool (PEP) funding targets. The funding target for the Supplemental Covered-Lives Assessments paid during the October 1, 2008, through March 31, 2009, period, has been increased by $110 million. The target for the regular annual Covered-Lives Assessments has also been increased by $120 million commencing on January 1, 2009.

Revised Supplemental and 2009 Covered-Lives Assessment rates are enclosed. The revised 2009 Covered-Lives Assessment rates will be incorporated into the electronic application used to file your monthly Public Goods Pool report by February 13, 2009. If a payor has submitted their January 2009 Public Goods Pool report prior to this date, they will be billed under separate cover for the difference in March 2009.

For the Supplemental Covered-Lives obligation, payors will continue to pay on the current Covered-Lives Assessment rates and will be billed in April 2009 for the balance due using the enclosed revised Supplemental Covered-Lives Assessment rates. Such balances will be due within 30-days of issuance of these bills.

If you have any questions regarding the above, please contact a HCRA representative at (518) 474-1673.

Sincerely,

John E. Ulberg, Jr.,
Director,
Division of Health Care Financing

Enclosure