Tag: primary

Categories
Politics

Eric Adams Wins Democratic Main for NYC Mayor

Eric Adams Wins Democratic Primary for NYC Mayor

The final match between Mr. Adams and Ms. Garcia revealed sharp divisions within the Democratic Party over race, class and education.

Mr Adams, who posed as a working class candidate, topped the first election list in all counties except Manhattan and was the strong favorite among black and Latin American working class workers. He also demonstrated strength among white voters who held more moderate views, particularly among those who did not graduate from college – some data suggests – a coalition compared to the coalition that led President Biden to nominate the Democrats in 2020 .

Ms. Garcia, a former sanitation officer who spread a message of technocratic literacy, was popular with white moderate voters in the five boroughs. But she was overwhelmingly the Manhattan candidate and dominated some of the richest zip codes in the country. She appealed to highly educated and wealthier voters from across the ideological spectrum there and in parts of Brownstone Brooklyn, although she struggled to connect with colored voters elsewhere in the way it took to win.

The results crowned a remarkable chapter in the city’s political history: the race started in a pandemic and took several unexpected turns in recent weeks as a candidate faced allegations of sexual misconduct dating back decades; another faced an implosion of the campaign; and Mr. Adams, under fire for residency issues, offered reporters a tour of the Brooklyn apartment he claims to live in.

Most recently, it was marked by an electoral committee counting catastrophe that left Democrats simmering concerns about whether the final result would make voters divided and suspicious of the city’s electoral process. In a statement on Tuesday evening, Ms. Wiley thanked her supporters and expressed major concerns about the election committee.

“We will say more about the next steps shortly,” the statement said. “Today we just have to re-commit to a reformed electoral committee and build new confidence in the administration of the polls in New York City. New York City voters deserve better, and the BOE needs to be remade from scratch after a debacle that can only be described as a debacle. “

Ms. Garcia came third among voters who personally cast their ballots on Primary Day and during the early term, following both Mr. Adams and Ms. Wiley. But because of the ranked election, she moved up to second place, with significant support from voters who named Ms. Wiley and Andrew Yang, a former presidential candidate, as their top contenders.

Categories
Politics

Stephen Ross-funded PAC spent over $1 million going into NYC major election

Stephen Ross-funded PAC spent over $1 million going into NYC primary election

A super PAC funded largely by real estate billionaire Stephen Ross spent just over $1 million to influence New York City’s primary race for City Council, with part of that investment going against progressives who are running for key council posts.

The organization, Common Sense NYC, has raised over $2 million. Ross, the chairman and founder of the real estate giant Related Companies, donated $1 million, and Ronald Lauder, also a billionaire and the youngest son of makeup legend Estee Lauder, contributed $500,000. Ross and Lauder have a combined net worth of over $12 billion, according to Forbes.

Ross, who is also the owner of the Miami Dolphins, came under fire in 2019 when he hosted a fundraiser in the Hamptons for former President Donald Trump. Equinox and SoulCycle, two luxury fitness brands owned by Related Companies, distanced themselves from the Trump event as customers threatened to boycott. In August, CNBC reported that Lauder, who has been a friend of Trump’s for years, had yet to start raising money for the then-president’s reelection campaign.

The financial might of the group was evident in the 24 hours before the official primary day. The New York City Campaign Finance Board shows that the organization spent over $100,000 and distributed at least nine mailers on Monday, the day before the election, opposing a group of progressive City Council candidates.

The PAC may not be done trying to sway voters away from various City Council contenders. A leader of the committee told CNBC they’re leaving open the possibility of continuing their efforts into the November general election.

“In the event that there are competitive NYC Council races in the general election, Common Sense NYC may be involved. I personally don’t anticipate more than two or three Council races being competitive in November,” Jeff Leb, the PAC’s treasurer, said in an email to CNBC on Tuesday.

The sheer amount raised and spent going into Tuesday’s primary by the group, officially labeled an independent expenditure committee, shows the importance to business leaders of influencing the lesser known City Council races. The PAC’s messaging has been focused, in part, on pushing back on the idea of defunding the police and other progressive causes.

The New York City Council is the legislative body responsible for creating and voting on proposed New York City laws. A group such as Common Sense can raise and spend an unlimited amount of money on the City Council races they deem important. Wall Street executives have already poured over $9 million into the race for New York’s next mayor, with most of the big money going to former presidential candidate Andrew Yang and Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams.

Longtime New York Democratic strategist Hank Sheinkopf told CNBC that beyond the group being worried about New York in a post-pandemic world, the move by the Ross-backed PAC to spend a ton against progressive candidates for City Council represents a power play by the real estate community.

“This is an attempt to … prove how powerful they are,” Sheinkopf told CNBC in an interview on Tuesday. Sheinkopf noted that members of the City Council have publicly taken on New York’s big business leaders and said Common Sense’s campaign is a test of how much power New York executives have going forward.

“Well, let’s say if they don’t win those races, will people be afraid of them? The fact is people aren’t afraid of them now. If they win, people will be more afraid. Power is about fear and not friendship,” Sheinkopf said.

The political strategist said that the City Council has become more and more progressive over the years and business leaders have often been criticized by those politicians, which led to the creation of PACs such as Common Sense NYC. “Business interests have been attacked by this council and there’s been an attempt to constrain the business community, including pushback on the power of the real estate community,” Sheinkopf said.

Leb defended the candidates the group supported in a separate email to CNBC.

“Common Sense NYC supported a broad slate of candidates who are pragmatic in their thinking and who are demonstrably qualified to help New York recover from the pandemic,” Leb said on Tuesday. “We are highlighting which candidates are qualified for local office and which are not, in races that are getting little attention otherwise. None of our funders played an active role in the operation or direction of Common Sense and they did not pick the races we engaged in.”

Leb, who is also a managing partner at Capitol Consulting, is ranked by City & State as one of the top lobbyists in New York.

The PAC has spent over $540,000 supporting 18 local candidates for office and nearly the same amount opposing eight others.

Representatives for Ross and Lauder did not respond to requests for comment before publication.

One of the big targets of Common Sense NYC has been Michael Hollingsworth, who is running for Brooklyn’s 35th District on the City Council. The PAC has spent over $100,000 opposing him. Two mailers against Hollingsworth were delivered to voters on Monday. One of the mailers reviewed by CNBC takes aim at Hollingsworth wanting to cut back on New York policing.

“While crime continues to go up, Michael Hollingsworth wants police funding to go down,” the mailer reads. “We must stop Michael Hollingsworth from defunding the police!” the ad says. The Gotham Gazette reports that Hollingsworth is supported by New York City’s Democratic Socialists of America and has received an endorsement by former gubernatorial candidate Cynthia Nixon.

Hollingsworth responded to the campaign being waged against him in a tweet after this story was published.

“We are not beholden to the wealthy, real estate donors, or special interests. We’re with the people,” he said on Twitter.

Common Sense NYC has spent over $95,000 to oppose Jaslin Kaur, who running for District 23’s City Council spot. The district is located in Queens, and Kaur was recently endorsed by progressive Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y. The City reported that Kaur was also endorsed by the Democratic Socialists of America.

Common Sense NYC spent just over $26,000 on two mailers against Kaur that were distributed on Monday.

Others seeing opposition from the Ross-backed effort include John Choe, who is running in a primary for District 20’s seat, and Alexa Aviles, a contender for New York City’s District 38 seat who also saw an endorsement from Ocasio-Cortez.

Choe commented on the moves being made by the Ross-backed PAC in a tweet Tuesday in response to this story.

“As the founder of our neighborhood Chamber that helps small businesses, I challenge the notion these super PAC vultures represent anything more than the rapacious greed and hubris of the billionaire oligarchs who are slowly destroying our country,” Choe said on Twitter.

Aviles said the PAC’s decision to take aim at her represents a larger campaign being waged by the real estate industry.

“It’s no wonder that Common Sense NYC, Inc. is spending a ludicrous amount of money attacking our people-powered campaign in District 38,” Aviles told CNBC after this story was published. “After all, one of their top donors is Trump-supporting Stephen Ross, a billionaire real-estate developer focused on devouring up our neighborhoods. I’m proud that the real-estate industry recognizes that we will fight them back. Our campaign is unequivocally against the interests of billionaires, because we’re fighting for working people.”

Categories
Health

Major Care Docs Really feel Left Out of Vaccine Rollout

Primary Care Doctors Feel Left Out of Vaccine Rollout

Despite their willingness to participate, only one in five GPs said they gave their patients the vaccine. This was found in a survey conducted in mid-January by the Larry A. Green Center with the nonprofit Primary Care Collaborative. Given the widespread supply shortages, many were unable to get the vaccine and a third of them said they had not had contact with their local health department.

Dr. Katelin Haley, a family doctor in Lewes, Delaware, is one of the lucky few who just received 240 doses of the vaccine and will immunize patients this week. Your employees had asked the state every day when they could expect a delivery. “The hunt for the vaccine was almost a full-time occupation,” she said.

While Dr. Haley, who also works with Aledade, agrees with the state’s struggle for adequate supplies of the vaccine, she believes practices like hers need some of the doses. “It’s a delicate balance to meet the needs of the state and the needs of the individual practice,” she said.

Some doctors, like Dr. Altman, have received small amounts of the vaccine but do not know when they may have enough to immunize all qualified patients. At the end of January, Dr. Despite the cold weather, Altman and his staff vaccinated 200 patients in the practice parking lot. “The patients were literally in tears, they were so grateful for our efforts,” he said.

The Trump administration left it up to states to determine how to distribute the vaccines, and states and even local communities are taking different approaches. “So much of whether primary care is used effectively depends on the state,” said Ann Greiner, executive director of the Primary Care Collaborative.

Although demand for vaccines is currently outstripping supply, it is important to rely on family doctors to vaccinate the public when supply exceeds demand later in the year, said Dr. Asaf Bitton, a family doctor who is the general manager of Ariadne Labs, is at Brigham and Women’s Hospital and the Harvard TH Chan School of Public Health. Your involvement will be crucial in overcoming vaccine hesitation and achieving herd immunity.

As some conversations begin, “they should have started six months ago,” he said.

Categories
Health

UnitedHealthcare launches digital major look after employer plans

UnitedHealthcare launches virtual primary care for employer plans

This arranged photo shows a UnitedHealth Group health insurance card in a wallet in this image illustration dated October 14, 2019.

Lucy Nicholson | Reuters

UnitedHealthcare is expanding its telemedicine offering for employers to include a new virtual basic care service that gives doctors access to routine visits on their phones or computers who pay little or no co-payments.

“Before Covid, we worked with big primary care practices … and it was really difficult to get an admission. Patients wanted it, but doctors were really uncomfortable with the whole idea of ​​virtually seeing patients,” said Dr. Donna O’Shea, Chief Medical Officer, Population Health Management at UnitedHealthcare, the health insurance arm of the UnitedHealth Group.

Doctors have been slow to introduce telemedicine, as the reimbursement rates for virtual visits were often lower than for personal care. That has changed because of Covid. Government Medicare’s plans for seniors and private health insurers increased reimbursement rates during the pandemic last year, and inevitably increased adoption of virtual care by doctors and patients.

Now UnitedHealth is betting that patients are ready to take the next step towards a more convenient option.

“We know 25% of people don’t have a basic provider … maybe it’s really difficult to get out of work (to see one) and maybe if it were easier for you, you might have one,” said O’Shea .

The pandemic has also fueled the race to enter virtual basic services. Telemedicine provider Teladoc Health has tried to move beyond one-time urgent care visits to a basic care model for employers. So is Amazon, which is exploring the expansion of its in-house Amazon Care virtual health program for Washington state workers to include a service for other employers.

While non-traditional companies like Amazon can bring expertise to consumer engagement, that is not enough to gain a foothold with employers, said Steven Shill, national director of the BDO Center for Healthcare Excellence & Innovation.

“There must be complementary skills and part of the complementary skills must be healthcare,” Shill said, adding that half of the healthcare executives surveyed by BDO plan to consider new partnerships this year.

“I think these partnerships will come and go until you have the right partners together,” he said.

UnitedHealth is working with telehealth provider Amwell, who will provide the platform for virtual care and clinical services through its medical group. The virtual primary care program will initially be available to employers in 11 states, including Colorado, Texas, Maryland and Washington, DC.

Editor’s Note: This story has been updated to reflect that Donna O’Shea is the Chief Medical Officer for Population Health Management at UnitedHealthcare, the health insurance arm of the UnitedHealth Group.