NEW YORK, NY—May 7, 2024—NEW YORK, NY—United Hospital Fund announced today that it has selected Peter Newell, director of its Health Insurance Project, as its 2024 Patricia S. Levinson Fellow.
Mr. Newell conducts research and analysis that highlights barriers to insurance coverage, identifies ways to expand coverage, and helps shape solutions to policy and implementation challenges. The many reports he has authored include a publication on the ways health insurance plans can address health inequities, a consumer guide with practical advice on how to replace health coverage lost during the pandemic, and a series of issue briefs exploring key issues in New York's implementation of the Affordable Care Act. Over the past year, Mr. Newell has collaborated with New York State officials to hold a series of convenings devoted to keeping New Yorkers covered during the “unwinding,” the federally required recertification of over 9 million enrollees in Medicaid, Child Health Plus, and the Essential Plan, which was suspended during the COVID pandemic.
“Peter’s important contributions are a critical component of UHF’s mission to ensure that all New Yorkers have access to universal, affordable health insurance and health care,” said UHF president and CEO Oxiris Barbot, MD. “His work is a fitting tribute to Patricia S. Levinson.”
Created in 2017 with the support of the Robert A. and Patricia S. Levinson Award Fund at The New York Community Trust, the fellowship aims to advance UHF’s work improving health for underserved populations in honor of one of its most dedicated and longest-serving board members, Patricia S. Levinson. Ms. Levinson was a vice chair of UHF’s board at the time of her death in 2015.
Mr. Newell joined United Hospital Fund in 2007 after serving as the executive director of the New York State Assembly Committee on Insurance and as staff director for Assemblymember Pete Grannis. Earlier in his career, Mr. Newell directed the Assembly’s Committee on Housing. A former reporter and editor for weekly newspapers in Manhattan, he holds a BA in English from the University of Notre Dame.
About United Hospital Fund
United Hospital Fund works to build an effective and equitable health care system for every New Yorker. An independent, nonprofit organization, we are a force for improvement, analyzing public policy to inform decision-makers, finding common ground among diverse stakeholders, and developing and supporting innovative programs that improve health and health care. We work to dismantle barriers in health policy and health care delivery that prevent equitable opportunities for health. For more on our initiatives and programs please visit our website at www.uhfnyc.org and follow us on LinkedIn, and X.