Metropolitan Hospital Center in East Harlem is the go-to center for many neighborhood residents seeking affordable health care. Alina Moran said it’s always been that way. “My parents migrated here from Puerto Rico. They chose to come and use a safety net hospital because they didn’t have access to insurance,” she said. Moran was born at Metropolitan and now, as the hospital's CEO, she manages a wide range of services from births to geriatric care. “We are here to serve all patients regardless of their ability to pay.”

"New York City Health and Hospitals would be in the position to bare the vast majority if not the entirety of the DSH cuts," said Patrick Orecki, who focuses on health policy at the Citizens Budget Commission. Congress has postponed these cuts three times. Now, they’re scheduled to go into effect in Fiscal Year 2020. The CBC, the Community Service Society and other groups have called on the state to find a new way to distribute its dollars. Governor Cuomo recently announced a working group to study the issue.