VITALS 5 MINUTES WITH... How to influence state policy A children's hospital CEO successfully lobbied for a landmark bill for medically fragile children, revealing a blueprint for others. In September of 2023, New York passed a bipartisan bill to protect medically fragile children. Blythedale Children's President and CEO Larry Levine was the originator of the legislative language and advocacy for the bill. For three years, he and his team lobbied for the bill, which passed almost unanimously. " This is a landmark law, the first in the nation, to challenge payors in the way they must address medical sions, " he said. necessity deciLarry Levine, CEO of Blythedale Childrenʼs Hospital, helped draft legislation and lobbiy for protections for medically fragile children. 30 CHILDREN'S HOSPITALS TODAY Spring 2024 Photo: Blythedale Childrenʼs Hospital