Affordable Healthcare For Volunteers on Its Way?

The New York State Senate recently passed legislation that would allow municipalities to offer health services and insurance to volunteer firefighters and ambulance workers, which could help bolster and maintain their ranks.

"Our volunteer firefighters and ambulance workers deal with dangerous situations day in and day out in order to help their neighbors and keep their neighborhoods safe," Senator Craig M. Johnson (D-Port Washington) said. "I am proud to have voted to allow these brave men and women this option to access to affordable healthcare."

Although the need for emergency services continues to rise, Senator Johnson said the number of volunteers has declined over the last decade. He said this act (S5111) was drafted in part to help get the numbers to go up.

"This is very dangerous work, and many who would like to join do not out of the fear of healthcare costs that could be associated with an injury," Johnson said. "This legislation will help attract more volunteers, which in-turn will help improve the safety of our communities."

Ex-captain of the Port Washington Fire Medics, Christina Alexander, agrees. "The thing that's wonderful about that is the possible effect it would have on our recruitment," she said. "A lot of members have to make a choice between working and volunteering because they need benefits, and they often choose benefits. Young people struggle with working versus volunteering because there aren't benefits."

The bill would amend the general municipal law and the civil service law "to permit any public corporation to provide health insurance coverage for volunteer firefighters and volunteer ambulance workers" and "to allow municipalities to offer the New York State Health Insurance Plan (NYSHIP) to volunteer firefighters and ambulance company workers."

Johnson said this bill is to correct previous NYSHIP legislation. "This is corrective legislation to that," he said. "It allows access. The volunteers have to pay for it out of pocket, but its gives them access to municipal health insurance, which, it's fair to say, is much better than what people would try to get as a self-employed person. It's more cost effective, less expensive and, in many cases, of better quality then if somebody tried to get insurance on the private market."

Once passed in the New York State Assembly and signed off by the Governor, it will go into effect immediately. "It was passed last year by the Assembly, but it wasn't passed by the Senate," Johnson explained. "We anticipate the Assembly will pass it again. The stuff that kind of fell through the cracks last year, we're making sure it doesn't now."

Assistant Chief of the Port Washington Fire Department, Geoffrey P. Cole, said he thinks this sort of legislation is a step in the right direction, but that volunteers shouldn't get too excited until it becomes a law.

"Anything that helps the volunteer fire service to attract and retain members would benefit the volunteer fire departments," he said. "The ability of volunteer members of the fire and EMS service to purchase health insurance through a group plan is a positive step. As with any legislation, we await confirmation that the governor has signed the bill into law and the wording is exactly the same."

Individuals interested in volunteering should call the Port Washington Fire Department or go to http://www.dos.state.ny.us/fire/firewww.html for more information.