NYC Med News explains how to get medical care in New York City without getting wrecked by the bill.
Most health writing tells you what a condition is. Very little of it tells you what New Yorkers actually need to know: which plan you still qualify for after your coverage changed, what a hospital is legally allowed to charge you, whether a clinic in your neighborhood takes your insurance, and what to do on a Tuesday afternoon when you have no coverage at all.
That is the gap we work in.
What we cover
Coverage. Medicaid, the Essential Plan, Qualified Health Plans on NY State of Health, Medicare, Child Health Plus, NYC Care, union plans. Who qualifies, what changed this year, and by what date you have to act.
Costs. What care costs in this city — emergency rooms, urgent care, imaging, routine visits — and what happens to the bill afterward. Hospital financial assistance under New York law, surprise billing protections, and medical debt.
Rights. Your right to an interpreter. What your immigration status does and does not affect. How to appeal a denial. How to get your records.
Neighborhoods. Where care is available in specific parts of the city, in which languages, under which plans.
What we don’t do
We do not give medical advice. We do not diagnose, recommend treatments, or tell you whether your symptoms are serious. When a question is clinical, the answer is your clinician’s, not ours.
We also don’t sell placement. No practice, hospital, or clinic pays to appear on this site, and none of our lists are sponsored. How we build those lists is written out in How We Report.
How we source
Every number on this site comes from a primary source — the New York State Department of Health, NY State of Health, the NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene, NYC Health + Hospitals, CMS, or the text of the law — and carries the date we checked it. Programs and income thresholds change, sometimes mid-year. When they change, we update the page and say so.
Our full standards are in Editorial Standards and Corrections.
Who we are
NYC Med News is a small independent publication. Our editors are listed on their own pages, with what they cover and how to reach them: Iris Delgado writes about coverage and access; Nathan Brody covers costs and billing.
We are not affiliated with the City of New York, NYC Health + Hospitals, the New York State Department of Health, or any hospital system, insurer, or medical practice. If you’ve landed here looking for NYCMED, the city’s platform for health professionals, that’s a different site and not ours.
Getting in touch
Corrections, questions, and tips: editor@nycmednews.com. We read everything. If we got something wrong, we want to know quickly — see our corrections policy.
More in NYC Med News
- What an Emergency Room Visit Actually Bills You For — One emergency room visit produces several bills: a facility fee set by acuity, a separate physician fee, and every lab and scan billed again.
- What Changed in New York Health Coverage This Summer — Four changes moved this year in New York health coverage — and one thing that did not. A short roundup with the source for each.
- You Have the Right to an Interpreter — Here's How to Use It — Hospitals and clinics receiving federal funds must provide free interpretation. What that covers in New York, why family members shouldn't translate, and what to say when you're refused.
This page explains how the system works. It is not medical advice. More.