New York City’s Healthcare Nonprofits Rally on City Hall Steps in Support of Transformative Health Access Funding
New York, New York (May 22, 2026) – Over three dozen nonprofit leaders, healthcare service providers and advocates rallied on the steps of City Hall on Friday in support of increased funding for Access Health NYC, a vital City Council initiative that supports nonprofits providing critical healthcare outreach and access in the five boroughs.
Throughout the rally, speakers called on Speaker Julie Menin and City Council to enhance funding for Access Health NYC to $4.5 million so that NYC’s nonprofits can continue to ensure our neighbors have access to culturally and linguistically accessible healthcare information, mental health programming, and more.
Access Health NYC’s City Hall Rally comes at a time when immigrants and other vulnerable New Yorkers are deprioritizing their health and other needs due to fear around immigration, access to food and other federal benefits, and more. Earlier this year, CACF in collaboration with our Access Health NYC partners published Restoring Trust, Protecting Health: Policy Actions to Support Immigrant Communities in Crisis, a brief that details the chilling effect the deliberate uncertainty created by recent federal changes to Medicaid, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), and the ACA insurance marketplace has had on NYC immigrants— a population that includes green card holders, asylum seekers, and the undocumented —- and the work the nonprofit organizations that are part of the City Council-funded Access Health NYC initiative are doing to ensure to combat this mistrust while also ensuring vulnerable New Yorkers are getting the health and mental health care they need.
Speakers at the rally included Access Health NYC’s co-leaders from the Coalition for Asian American Children and Families (CACF) and the New York Immigration Coalition (NYIC) as well as Access Health NYC coalition members Commission on the Public's Health System (CPHS), Charles B Wang Community Health Center, Make the Road NY, Mekong NYC, and South Asian Council for Social Services (SACSS).
When you step outside in New York City, you hear the entire world around you. No other city speaks as many languages, encompasses as many cultures, and brings together as many different communities as ours does," said Councilmember Justin E. Sanchez, who represents the South Bronx, "It’s what makes our city unique and one of our greatest strengths, but if we’re going to continue to thrive, we must make sure that our healthcare systems can meet every New Yorker where they are and delivers services in a language they speak from providers they trust. Access Health NYC has done this critical work to build the bridge between community and care to make certain nobody is left behind.”
Throughout the rally, Access Health NYC nonprofit organizations stressed the critical need for linguistically and culturally accessible services.
"Nonprofits play a key role in NYC's public health, but continued funding is critical as community needs escalate and changes to federal programs create increased uncertainty, fear, and confusion amongst already-vulnerable communities," said Anita Gundanna and Vanessa Leung, Co-Executive Directors of Coalition for Asian American Children and Families (CACF) and the co-leads of Access Health NYC. "Access Health NYC has proven to be an indispensable lifeline for immigrant and limited-English-proficient New Yorkers navigating an uncertain healthcare and information landscape. We urge Speaker Julie Menin and the City Council to enhance funding for the initiative to $4.5 million in the FY27 budget. This increased investment will allow us to maintain vital, culturally tailored language access and culturally accessible services – which is key to a healthier city for us all.”
"Access Health NYC is a cornerstone initiative of New York City's public health response and meets our most vulnerable immigrant families where they are," said Murad Awawdeh, President of the New York Immigration Coalition. "We are asking the City and Council to recognize this work by enhancing the program's budget to $4.5 million. Just this past year the program has reached upwards of tens of thousands of New Yorkers across all five boroughs. That is a drop in the bucket compared to the thousands of families who will rely on the program when they lose their coverage in the coming months."
“Access Health NYC is one of the city’s most effective tools for reaching New Yorkers facing increasing healthcare costs and limited access options,” said Elisabeth Benjamin, Vice President of Health Initiatives at the Community Service Society of New York. “Today’s rally sends a clear message: New Yorkers are demanding a stronger investment in community-based outreach and education at a time when federal policies are creating fear, confusion, and barriers to coverage and care. Increasing Access Health NYC funding to $4.5 million in FY27 will help ensure that more culturally and linguistically competent community-based organizations can connect vulnerable New Yorkers to the coverage and care they need.”
To be connected with one of CACF’s Co-Executive Directors or one of our Access Health NYC partners, please reach out to Lakshmi Gandhi, CACF’s Senior Communications Coordinator, at lgandhi@cacf.org.
