First-Year Enrollment and Utilization of New York State Paid Family Leave: 2018

Context: The New York Paid Family Leave (NYPFL) law was passed in April 2016 and took effect January 1, 2018. Expanding paid family leave (PFL) coverage has been proposed as a public health strategy to improve population health and reduce disparities. Objective: To describe first-year enrollment in NYPFL and to evaluate utilization of NYPFL benefits. Design: Observational study. Setting: New York State. Participants: Employees enrolled in the NYPFL program (N = 8 528 580). Methods: We merged NYPFL enrollment and claim data sets for 2018. Descriptive analysis and multiple logistic regression models were used to assess utilization by demographic variables and business size. Main Outcome Measure(s): Utilization and duration of NYPFL to bond with a newborn or care for a family member differed by employees' age, sex, race and ethnicity, residence, income, and business size. Results: Approximately 90% of working New Yorkers (N = 8 528 580) were enrolled in NYPFL. First-year utilization of PFL for newborn bonding and family care (9.4 and 4.0 per 1000 employees, respectively) was higher than comparable state PFL programs in California, New Jersey, or Rhode Island. An estimated 38.5% of employed women in New York utilized PFL for newborn bonding. Employees who worked at small businesses (1-49 employees) had lower utilization of PFL. Employees with lower incomes were more likely to claim PFL and employees of color or with lower incomes were more likely to take the maximum 8 weeks of PFL. Conclusions: These findings suggest that state PFL programs increase equity in employment benefits. Wider adoption of state/federal PFL programs could help reduce health disparities and improve maternal and infant health outcomes.