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Public Policy Projects 2005

 

"The Cutler Hypothesis: Measuring Quality of Life for New York Medicaid Reform," by Elizabeth Dolan and Katrina Lexa.        

New York has the highest Medicaid spending in the nation.  Elizabeth and Katrina found that an almost complete absence of patient outcome data made it nearly impossible to tell if additional spending in a county increased patient health or wasted money on unnecessary procedures.  Therefore, the students recommend that the first step in reforming Medicaid should be to implement a comprehensive system for collecting patient outcomes.  (Sponsoring Agency: New York Department of State)

 

"Greater Efficiency in Public Construction: An Argument for the Repeal of Wicks Law, " by Chris McPherson and Juliette Senk.

In New York State, most public agencies that build or renovate structures are required to contract separately with each of the major trades involved in construction, rather than utilizing a single general contractor.  The requirement is known as Wicks Law, and it is intended to lower costs and provide more opportunities for smaller contractors.  Chris and Juliette performed a cost-benefit analysis of the law, and concluded that it should be repealed.  (Sponsoring Agency: New York State Division of the Budget)

 

"Late Budgets in New York State: What Can Be Done?" by Sidney Martinez.

New York State has a history of late state budgets.  Sidney compared budget procedures in New York with those in other large states, and performed a statistical analysis to determine which factors influence whether a state's budget is late.  He concluded that New York State should implement new budget procedures, including a time limit on the deliberation of the budget by the legislature.  (Sponsoring Agency: New York State Division of the Budget)