Advocacy

​Earlier this week, I and members of the Big I NY board and staff joined employer groups from virtually every sector of the economy at a press conference to voice concerns with the “NY HERO Act", a bill mandating new workplace airborne infectious disease rules and regulations. The bill has now passed both the Senate and Assembly, and will soon head to the Governor's desk.The intent of this bill is noble – protecting workers from airborne diseases. But the reality for employers, particularly small businesses, is more crushing red tape, bureaucracy, and liability. Broadly speaking, the bill mandates the Department of Labor (DOL) to implement sweeping…

This week, the New York state leaders reached an agreement on a $212B state budget, the largest in the state's history. Ultimately, most of smaller policy provisions proposed by the Governor were removed, but many “big picture" policy pieces made the final cut. Here is a summary of the key pieces affecting you and your customers:No-Fault Anti-Fraud (Rejected): Big I NY supported the Governor's proposal to more easily and aggressively prosecute medical providers (“medical mills") that commit no-fault fraud, and lobbied members of the legislature on this issue during Independent Agents Advocacy Week. Unfortunately, this proposal was not included in the final budget. We are…

This week, Senator Neil Breslin, Chair of the Senate Insurance Committee, introduced legislation created by Big I NY to make the auto photo inspection voluntary at the discretion of an insurance carrier. This is a pro-customer measure to eliminate an unnecessary burden to the process of obtaining comp and collision coverage. Modern technology has rendered the photo inspection virtually useless (carriers tell us they don't even use them). It can be a major hassle for the insured, who risks losing coverage if the inspection isn't completed in time. Big I NY members sent over 220 emails to their state senators, calling on them to sign…