September 12th: The Governor has not yet vetoed SB840; in fact it won't officially get to his desk  until this Monday.   This means that we have one more opportunity to let him know just how important this is to all caring people and especially to Californians striving for a just society. 

The campaign timing is great and there will be other actions around the state; by a CTA demonstration/press conference in SFO, Sacramento and in other places (at the bottom).  It turns out that the telephone/email traffic was so intense that he had to slow it down by issuing an inane and insulting statement threatening a veto! (see below) The latest copy (9/14) of the SB840 bill is HERE

 

Let's tell Arnold: Just say YES to Health Care for All Californians/SB840

SIGN SB840 Into Law

 

Tel: 916-445-2841, Fax: 445-4633, Email: governor@governor.ca.gov ,

(& please cc sphc@mcn.org) or Link tohttp://www.govmail.ca.gov/

 

Just health care is a prerequisite for a truly just society.

 

tune into KZYX/KZYZ (or streaming at KZYX.org) Community Radio at 1:00 Pacific Time tomorrow for a Corporations & Democracy show on SB840/SPHC 

Also, http://sphc.mcn.org  for all the details and Stop Saying "Single Payer"   http://www.truthout.org/issues_06/091406HA.shtml for fun & enragement.


Among the statements made by the Governor in his veto press release:

Gov. "Socialized medicine is not the solution to our state's health care problems".

~SB840 is not socialized medicine, it is a non-profit health insurance system which enables every Californian's free choice of health care providers through an insurance agency that collects and disburses funds similar to current practice; but with social benefit (and cost savings) and minus corporate profit.

Gov. "This bill would require an extraordinary redirection of public and private funding by creating a vast new bureaucracy to take over health insurance and medical care for Californians -- a serious and expensive mistake."

~ Wrong again, SB840 does not take over medical care and the "vast bureaucracy" is primarily a redirection and extension/scaling up of the effort of current agencies. Virtually all health care facilities and organizations will continue their roles as providers and not be forced to make "adjustments" due to the financial impact of uninsured people.

Gov. "Such a program would cost the state billions and lead to significant new taxes on individuals and businesses, without solving the critical issue of affordability. I won't jeopardize the economy of our state for such a purpose."

~ Wrong again, and again.  SB840 would improve the economy by reducing most employers/employees health care costs, would improve the competitive position of all employers, would save the state tens of billions of dollars and would provide an economic boom for California.   The only losers are the insurance companies.

And on top of this, SB840 would create an atmosphere of community empowerment that would revolutionize the quality of life in California... and beyond.

It appears that our governor hasn't even read this legislation;  and that cynical attitude is a pretty good indication of his attitude.  Let's ask him again to sign SB840 and begin an era of transformation - or do it ourselves locally!  ~Bernie Macdonald     http://sphc.mcn.org


Press Conferences sponsored by a broad coalition of SB 840 supporters are being held throughout California next Tuesday, September 19 at 11:00 AM. Please come and show support for SB 840 and tell the governor one more time to do the right thing - sign SB 840 OR express your disappointment at the governor if he vetoes the bill.

 

It is critical that everyone who cares about true healthcare reform let the Governor know that we will not give up until we've reached universal healthcare in California!

 

Locations and contact information are listed below.

 

San Diego Location

 

Sharp Hospital

752 Medical Center Court

Chula Vista 91911

(619) 543-6222

 

Contact:

Margaret Shelley, CSEA

(858) 202-2617 (o)

(619) 884-6725 (c)     

 

Los Angeles Location

 

Los Angeles Free Clinic

Beverly Health Center
8405 Beverly Boulevard (@ Orlando)
Los Angeles, CA 90048

 

Contact:

Jim Walker, CSEA

(818) 502-3847 (o)

(661) 839-2925 (c)

 

Emily Gold, Sen. Kuehl’s office

(310) 441-9084 (o)

 

Fresno Location

 

Southwest Corner of Fresno St & Alluvial

(near Kaiser Hospital)

 

Contact:

Joyce Hale, CSEA

(559) 244-5315 (o)

(559) 977-3139 (c)     

 

San Francisco/Bay Area Location

 

SF General

1001 Potrero Ave

San Francisco 94110

(415) 206-8000

 

Contact:

Monadel Herzallah, CSEA

(925) 288-1155 (o)

 

Marta Ramirez, CSEA

(408) 261-7982 (o)

(510) 282-3813 (c)     

 

Sacramento Location

 

Las Palmas Health Clinic

577 Las Palmas Ave (in the Grant USD Adult Ed School parking lot)

Sacramento, CA

 

Contact:

Luci Clark, CSEA

(916) 727-7313 (o)

(209) 712-4712 (c)

 

…………………………………………………………………………….

Governor Vetoes SB840/Single Payer Health Care……………

 

Dear Governor Schwarzenegger,

 

I am amazed at your veto of SB840/Single Payer Health Care.  With one uncaring motion you have trivialized the health plight of all non-wealthy Californians and set back our economy by continuing the escalating employment health-care burden of our businesses.  This gesture is cynical beyond belief and will likely be rewarded in kind by the now awakened citizens of our state.

 

Your opportunity for leadership in California and in the country has been squandered and the legacy of your mean-spirited decision will be a deep sense of moral indignation and a cost of tens of billions of dollars to remedy.  And remedy we will; including every effort to remove you from office in the coming elections and a deep commitment to a stronger version of SB840 adopted by next year.

 

For a Just Society,

BC Macdonald,

In the Albion Nation

 


The SB840 press release, an insult to citizen's intelligence and an excellent example of NuSpeak

Governor’s veto release: http://gov.ca.gov/index.php?/press-release/3751

Media Response: http://www.californiaprogressreport.com/2006/09/schwarzenegger_21.html

 

Well, now we’ll definitely have a new governor; and early next year we’ll have a passed and signed off health care bill –and you can bet on it!!   ~BC Macdonald 9/8/2006

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

SB840/Single Payer Health Care

 * * * * * * * * * *PASSED!! on 8/30/06* * * * * * * * * *

 

SB840/Single Payer Health Care passed CA Assembly 43-31 and was on the Governor’s desk on Friday, 9-1

 

California Assembly Approves Universal Health Care
http://www.truthout.org/issues_06/082906HA.shtml
The Democratic-controlled Legislature is on the verge of sending Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger a bill that would create a state-run universal health care system, testing him on an issue that voters rate as one of their top concerns in this election year.

 

The opportunity of a lifetime - to be an active proponent for Universal Health Care by facilitating the governor's signoff of SB840 ~

 

The message is "Sign SB840/Single Payer Health Care Bill for the health of all Californians" with personal perspectives added to your missive to:

Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, Sacramento, CA 95814
Phone: 916-445-2841, Fax: 916-445-4633
              

or

email: governor@governor.ca.gov   (Subject: Please Sign SB840 - SPHC)

or link: http://www.govmail.ca.gov/  (select "Other" Subject & use Please Sign SB840 - SPHC)

(Both of these should provide a receipt in return for your correspondence)

Message: Please sign Sheila Kuehl's SB840/Single Payer Health Care bill (CHIRA) for the physical and mental health of ALL Californians.  Your signature will begin an era of truly humane politic for California and our nation; and save Californians over 10 Billion $/year.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

August ALERT

SB840 is at a critical vote stage now in the California legislature!!

Take this moment to demand your legislator to say yes to Universal health care in our state – go here and begin~!

 

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Community Forum on SPHC: SB840 & Beyond

July 7th at Fort Bragg Town Hall – 7:00

A clear description of the workings of SB840 followed by a

 Community forum addressing needs and strategies to make

Single Payer Health Care happen in our communities now.

………………………………………………………………………………………….

Resources:       NEW  http://www.singlepayernow.net       http://www.healthcareforall.org

…………….……………………………………………………………………

Long expected - SB1784 tax bill to fund SB840 is at:

http://info.sen.ca.gov/pub/bill/sen/sb_1751-1800/sb_1784_bill_20060224_introduced.html

On the senate floor in August and will move to the assembly quickly

……………………………………………………………………..……………………

From Senator Kuehl on SB840, Single Payer Health Care  May 10, 2001

 

The Democratic Party convention held in Sacramento a few weeks ago, marked the first time in California's history that a statewide political party has adopted a plank in its platform supporting a single payer health care system. The language in the platform reads: "California should lead the nation in providing comprehensive quality health care to all our people by transitioning to a single-payer public health care system."  More information may be found on their website at www.cadem.org.

Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) passed a motion in support of SB 840.
A motion supporting SB 840, introduced by board member Julie Korenstein was approved Tuesday, May 9 without objection by the LAUSD Board of Education. LAUSD is the largest school district in California.  Their approval brings the total number of official SB 840 supporters to almost 450. Savings under a single payer healthcare insurance system, such as the one proposed under SB 840, will save LAUSD $127 to $279 million on employee and retiree health benefits. These savings were calculated with collaboration from the California Teachers Association (CTA) and the California School Employees Association (CSEA). If you are interested in calculating savings for your school district or for more information about LAUSD, contact Cindy Young, at CSEA, CYOUNG@CSEA.COM or Jim Schlotz at CTA, JSchlotz@cta.org

Assemblymember Jenny Oropeza (D-Long Beach) added her name to the growing list of co-authors of SB 840, bringing the total number of co-authors to 39. The full list of co-authors can be viewed on Sen. Kuehl's website.

The OneCareNow.org campaign in support of SB 840 has had a major boost as the California League of Women Voters has decided to make the campaign a major priority. At the local level the League is taking responsibility for organizing in a number of cities and towns in Contra Costa and Alameda Counties as part of the OneCareNow, 365 day campaign.  The campaign will feature an event each and every day in support of SB 840, rotating through the 365 largest towns and cities in California. The OneCareNow community action teams in each of the 365 towns and cities will work to get city council resolutions in favor of SB 840 endorsed, the OneCareNow petition circulated, and an event on 'their' day publicized in local media and the OneCareNow.org website. For further information about SB 840 and the OneCareNow campaign, check websites healthcareforall.org and OneCareNow.org, where you can also sign the petition online or download copies to circulate.

Economist Paul Krugman calls for single payer - Economist and NY Times columnist Paul Krugman makes an excellent case for single payer in both his May 1, 2006 opinion piece "Death by Insurance" in the NY Times and a more detailed article in the NY Review of Books.

A new statewide poll conducted by the organization PowerPac, finds that Latinos, the fastest growing demographic in California, favor single-payer health care for California. For more information, go to their website at www.powerpac.org

Physicians for National Health Program, (PNHP) held their Leadership Training in Santa Monica (April 28-30)

Medical students, residents, physicians, and allied health professionals spent these days absorbing new data, making contacts with each other and planning new activities (including outreach to Kaiser Physicians, medical schools, and other professional schools including public health, law, public policy and business). Please remember to email or call the California Physicians Alliance if you are holding a talk or sponsoring an event. Our email is capa@jps.net of phone: (510) 832-7134. 

 

 

SB840, Single Payer Health Care for All Californian’s

 

Latest Update – April 9, 2006

 

California Health Insurance Reliability Act Update

by Sara Rogers

Rising health care costs have been making news headlines for nearly a decade now, and health care reform is firmly rooted as a staple of dinner table conversation. We hear every year that health insurance premiums are swelling by double digits, and most of us have felt the impact of this on our pocketbook (or perhaps our credit statements). We hear that our hospital services are increasingly strained by rising numbers of uninsured Californians, most of whom are average working families. If General Motors is any indication, we all have good reason to wonder if the health care system is even going to be there when we need it.

The debate around health reform seems to be limited to bickering about who is going to pay for these huge increases in health care costs; should physicians earn less, should hospitals charge less, should employers pay more, should consumers pay more? The more difficult question, one that SB 840 helps to answer, is, “Why are health care costs rising in the first place?”

Senate Bill 840 (Kuehl), the California Health Insurance Reliability Act, is California’s plan to establish a system of universal health insurance in California. It provides every California resident with comprehensive health care benefits in a way that is affordable for individuals and businesses, contains the growth in health care spending, and guarantees the right of the patient to choose his or her own physician.

A recent survey published by Small Business California found that 52% of small businesses would support a “single-payer system similar to what Canada has where the government finances health care but keeps the delivery of health care to mostly private sources”. Another poll published by the California Public Policy Institute found that 60% of Californians support this kind of model.

These indications point to a growing sense of urgency for change, one that could create a favorable wind for SB 840. The California Nurses Association recently announced that they wanted to become the principal sponsor of SB 840. The nurses decided to make universal healthcare their number one priority after several hundred nurses went to volunteer in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina and discovered that a large number of the patients they were helping were receiving medical care for the very first time in their lives.

A growing network of organizations is pushing for this change on a grassroots level throughout the state. Building upon the organizing work of Health Care for All and the California Physicians Alliance (CaPA), teachers, school employees, health advocates, social workers, medical students, retiree groups, faith-based groups, and others are working to build an effective citizen’s movement strong enough to overcome opposition by the insurance industry.

Across the state, this coalition is actively organizing educational forums, letter writing campaigns, speakers’ trainings, and more. They are asking City Councils, Boards of Supervisors, School Boards, and even Water Districts to pass resolutions in support of SB 840. They are coordinating with one another, sharing materials and working together on this common goal.

SB 840 is currently in the Assembly, having passed the Senate policy committees, the Senate Floor, and the Assembly Health committee. The next hurdle is the Assembly appropriations committee. The deadline in that committee is August 18th.

In addition, Senator Kuehl has introduced SB 1784 to establish a mechanism to collect premiums and consolidate state and federal money in this system. SB 840 will be funded by consolidating all the public money spent on health care, as well as replacing the private premiums, co-payments and deductibles, now paid by individuals and employers, with premiums paid to the system. The Lewin study, available at www.healthcareforall.org provides a glimpse of the kinds of premiums it might take to fund the system. SB 1784 simply creates the mechanism needed to collect those premiums.

To become involved with this growing movement, please visit www.healthcareforall.org and contact your local chapter President. To add yourself to our email update list, email Senator.Kuehl@sen.ca.gov with “subscribe SB 840” in the subject line.

 

 

 

Current SB840 STATUS- July 2005: SB840 APPROVED IN ASSEMBLY HEALTH COMMMITTEE  ~ waiting in rules committee

On July 5, 2005, State Senate Bill 840, the California Health Insurance Reliability Act (CHIRA), authored by State Senator Sheila Kuehl (D-23), passed the State Assembly Health Committee by a vote of 9-4.  SB 840 would provide health insurance with comprehensive benefits to every Californian while preserving each consumer’s right to choose his or her own doctor.  By establishing a streamlined reimbursement process that would take the place of current public and private insurance plans, SB 840 would enable California to save billions of dollars in administrative costs, thus making it possible to offer every resident the comprehensive benefits plan laid out in the bill.

In place of all current premiums, deductibles, co-pays and other out of pocket expenses, consumers would pay a yearly means-based premium for all coverage, which would include medical, dental, vision, prescription drug, hospitalization and emergency coverage, along with other services.  SB 840 is the only bill being discussed in the legislature that enables the State of California to utilize its full purchasing power to negotiate bulk discounts for prescription drugs and durable medical equipment like all other industrial countries.  Medical care, retail pharmacy sales and other health care delivery services would remain private and subject to competition.

SB 840 is designed to put no new burden on California’s general fund.  It is based on a model developed from an analysis of California health plans by the Lewin Group, an independent healthcare cost/benefit analysis firm.  The Lewin model, detailed in a report released in January of this year, details ways by which SB 840 can reduce overall healthcare costs in California while insuring every resident at a high level of coverage.

You can access the new, amended version from the Senate website at   

 

HTML

- 197092 bytes

PDF

- 404416 bytes

or status at  http://info.sen.ca.gov/pub/bill/sen/sb_0801-0850/sb_840_bill_20050722_status.html or at http://www.healthcareforall.org ; links for these sites are at http://sphc.mcn.org

Bill Update:  SB 840 is not going to have fiscal language added at this stage.  It will remain a "policy" bill.  The substance of the act will be divided into two bills (the policy bill and the fiscal bill). SB 840 will remain the policy bill with all of the benefits, governance structure, transitional procedures, delivery of care details, consumer advocacy and protections and structures for efficiencies and savings and sustainability spelled out. Funding for SB840/CHIRA will be developed in the Senate Revenue and Taxation Committee with Senator Mike Machado, Chair, taking the lead in analyzing different funding plans.  The first hearing will be this June 2005, when experts will begin to look at the possibilities.  (As many of us know, the Lewin Group has done two cost/benefit studies of proposals that address California’s health system.)  A fiscal bill based on feedback from these hearings will be introduced in January 2006.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

CONTACT:  Sara Rogers 916.651.4023 or Robin Podolsky 310.441.9084

 

 

SB 840, THE CALIFORNIA HEALTH INSURANCE RELIABILITY ACT (CHIRA) PASSED BY THE STATE SENATE
CHIRA SUPPORTED BY STATE SENATE PRESIDENT PRO TEM PERATA
AND HEALTH COMMITTEE CHAIR DEBORAH ORTIZ

 

On May 31, 2005, State Senate Bill 840, the California Health Insurance Reliability Act (CHIRA), authored by State Senator Sheila Kuehl, passed in the State Senate by a vote of 24 to 14 and has been sent to the State Assembly for consideration.  SB 840 would insure every Californian with comprehensive health benefits while preserving each consumer's right to choose his or her own doctor.  SB 840 would create a streamlined reimbursement process that would take the place of current public and private insurance plans, thus saving billions in administrative costs.  Consumers would pay a yearly means-based premium for all coverage, which would include medical, dental, vision, prescription drug, hospitalization and emergency coverage, along with other services.

 

The plan is expected to put no new burden on California's general fund.  According to the projections of the Lewin Group, an independent healthcare cost/benefit analysis firm, a model on which SB 840 is based could wind up reducing overall healthcare costs in California while insuring every resident at a high level of coverage.

"It's often the case that the most efficient solution to a problem is also the most compassionate solution," says Senator Kuehl.  "And we must find a solution to our ballooning healthcare crisis.  One in 5 Californians is uninsured.  Those of us who have coverage are seeing everything rise: premiums, deductibles, co-pays and out of pocket expenses, while our coverage continues to decline.  Half of the personal bankruptcies in this country are the result of medical expenses, and the majority of the people bankrupted for that reason had insurance at the time they became sick or injured.

"This issue affects all of us," Kuehl continued.  "One bad traffic accident can wipe out a lifetime of careful financial decisions.  Even the minority of people with good coverage can find themselves suffering in an emergency, because emergency rooms are choked with people who aren't actually in emergencies,  but have nowhere else to go-or who wouldn't have needed emergency care if they'd only had the preventive care they needed.

"I am very grateful that so many of my colleagues in the State Senate saw the pressing need for this bill.  This is what we should be doing-trying to solve the real problems of real people."

 

&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&

 

SB921 now is….

 SB840, California Health Insurance Reliability Act 

The California Health Insurance Reliability Act, CHIRA, SB 840, Kuehl passed the Senate Health Committee on 4/28 by a vote of 7– 4 with all the Democrats on the committee voting for the bill and all the Republicans voting against it.  The bill will now go to the Senate Appropriations Committee and then to the Senate Floor before June 3, 2005.

Minor amendments were made to the bill following the vote in the Senate Insurance Committee on April 6.  You can access the new, amended version from the Senate website at www.sen.ca.gov or at www.healthcareforall.org

Senate Appropriations Committee:  SB 840 will be heard in the Senate Appropriations Committee late May.  The bill has strong support among the Democrats on the Appropriations Committee, as shown in the list below:

Democrats on the Appropriations Committee:  Sen. Migden, Chair -- Coauthor, Sen. Alquist -- Coauthor, Sen. Bowen, Sen. Escutia -- Coauthor, Sen. Florez -- Coauthor, Sen. Murray -- Coauthor, Sen. Ortiz -- Principal Coauthor, Sen. Speier -- Chair of Insurance Ctte, which SB 840 passed

Senate Floor:   According to the amended bill, the latest list of Senate coauthors of SB 840 is as follows: Alquist, Cedillo, Chesbro, Escutia, Figueroa, Florez, Lowenthal, Migden, Murray, Ortiz, Perata, Romero, and Soto.

All other Democratic Senators need to hear from their constituents prior to June 3.  Identify your own State Senator and Assemblymember online by visiting http://www.leginfo.ca.gov/yourleg.html

Bill Update:  SB 840 is not going to have fiscal language added.  It will remain a "policy" bill.  The substance of the act will be divided into two bills (the policy bill and the fiscal bill). SB 840 will remain the policy bill with all of the benefits, governance structure, transitional procedures, delivery of care details, consumer advocacy and protections and structures for efficiencies and savings and sustainability spelled out

Funding for SB840/CHIRA will be developed in the Senate Revenue and Taxation Committee with Senator Mike Machado, Chair, taking the lead in analyzing different funding plans.  The first hearing will be this June 2005, when experts will begin to look at the possibilities.  (As many of us know, the Lewin Group has done two cost/benefit studies of proposals that address California’s health system.)  A fiscal bill based on feedback from these hearings will be introduced in January 2006.

Organizational letters are especially important now and need to be re-submitted from last year. Please send hardcopy to State Capitol, Senator Kuehl, Room 5108, Sacramento, CA 95814 and HCA (POB 460622, San Francisco, CA 94146).  Fax/emails should be sent to senator Kuehl's office fax (916) 324-4823 or  Senator.Kuehl@sen.ca.gov and a copy to (707) 937-0603 or omni@mcn.org

 

(Endorsed by the Green Party of Mendocino County on April 16, 2005)

(Endorsed by the Green Party of California on April 8, 2005)

(Endorsed by the Coastal Alliance for Democracy)

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

California Health Insurance Reliability Act (SB840) .  

A 12% payroll tax (4% employee, 8% employer) finances full, non-cosmetic health care for all Californians.  The current infrastructure stays in place (except for insurance companies and their greedy CEO's) and we conservatively save $250+ billion over the next 10 years.

ACTIONS:  1. Get fully informed and support the legislative actions to begin this month; involve friends and neighbors; inform your community. 2. Solicit & Collect affirmative letters from organizations in your community.

YES - Single-Payer Health Care in California THIS YEAR with by working in Community!

 

Lewin Report: www.healthcareforall.org,  Summary:  www.healthcareforall.org/summary.pdf

 

Health Affairs, February 23, 2005, U.S. Health Spending Projections For 2004-2014
Projected National Health Expenditures (NHE) for 2005:
$1,936.5 billion - Total NHE; $6,423.1 - NHE per capita; 15.6% - NHE as percent of GDP    http://content.healthaffairs.org/cgi/content/abstract/hlthaff.w5.74   
These numbers are from the Office of the Actuary, Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS). These are very useful numbers for Health Care advocacy work since they represent what we are spending this year on health care, qualified as "CMS projections for 2005."

 

------------------------------- H I S T O R Y ------------------------------------

 

Health Care For All Californians with Senate Bill 921 (Kuehl)

(Details: Senate http://info.sen.ca.gov/cgi-bin/postquery?bill_number=sb_921&sess=CUR&house=B&site=sen )

        Assembly http://info.sen.ca.gov/cgi-bin/postquery?bill_number=ab_921&sess=CUR&house=B&site=sen

 

"of all the forms of inequality, injustice in health care is the most shocking and inhumane."  Martin Luther King, Jr.

 

 

Fellow Californians;

 

We are on the brink of a significant breakthrough in realizing California’s promise of a more equitable society with just health care for all. Senate Bill 921 creates a state health care agency to provide full health care for all Californians funded by payroll deductions and nicotine & alcohol sales taxes.  The California Health Care Agency will reimburse health care providers from the health care fund, manage medication costs and provide a comprehensive health oversight effort to deliver true Single Payer Health Care at a savings to Californians of $6 to $14 billion per year.

Just think about what the societal benefits can be with the empowerment of being part of this process and knowing that friends and people everywhere are protected and valued.



From: Senator Kuehl <Senator.Kuehl@SEN.CA.GOV>
Sent: Monday, June 30, 2003 12:47 PM
Subject: URGENT ALERT: SB 921 Status Update

Dear SB 921 Supporters:

I want to praise you and thank you so much for your incredible work on behalf of SB 921. Our success in moving through the Senate was due, in no small part, to your steadfast advocacy and passion. We have surpassed the expectations of many. We have 19 committed co-authors and 8 pages of organizations that support the bill. We have moved closer to Universal Health Care than ever before in California. SB 921 and your activism are inspiring a political movement which, I have no doubt, will achieve universal health coverage. I am fully committed to the bill's passage.

I have made a strategic decision that I believe will improve the possibility of getting a 2/3 vote in favor of SB 921 on the Assembly floor. And I have recommendations about how we can all best spend our time on behalf of SB 921 in the coming months.

I have requested that SB 921 not be heard in Assembly Health Committee on July 8 or at any time during the current legislative session. I made this decision for a number of reasons.

First, the attention of the Legislature is totally on the budget. SB 921 cannot now get the attention from legislators it needs and deserves. I think we have a better chance to get that attention next year. I know my colleagues are interested in health system reform and will be ready to focus on it in January. When we have their ear we could have more success at getting the 2/3 vote we need.

Secondly, I want to give my staff time to further craft the details of the reform. There area number of complex issues still to be decided, such as how to equitably tax Californians for universal health care and how Worker's Compensation might be integrated into a single payer system.

Thirdly, it is not at all certain that we can get the needed votes in the Assembly Health Committee. I do not want to take the risk of killing the bill. I prefer to let it sit in the Health Committee while we resolve the budget crisis and work further on the reform and have it heard and voted on in the next legislative session which begins in January 2004.

The time between now and January must be used to build support for SB 921. It is critical that we return in January with even more support than we have now and that legislators are aware of that support. So, I am asking advocates to continue lobbying members of the Assembly; the interim presents an excellent opportunity for constituents to reach legislators who are in their districts for the break.

I will put significant time into building support for the bill between now and the next legislative session. My staff will continue their work to gain support. I am considering holding hearings on the bill in the fall through my Senate Select Committee on Health Care for All Californians. I believe our office and the advocate coalition should strengthen ties and coordinate efforts. Once the budget is settled I would like to meet with the advocate steering committee to develop a plan of action to guide all our efforts.

Once again, my deepest gratitude for your commitment and your extraordinary work on behalf of single payer universal health care. You inspire me!

Sincerely,

Sheila Kuehl Senator
23rd District


Now is the time to move together towards creation of a populist tsunami of support for Universal Health Care.  We have 6 months to create a massive portfolio of supporters in the personal and organizational sectors that will be irrefutable this winter.  We will achieve social justice in the midst of fiscal and electoral politics which have not been experienced for over seventy years and are a component of a spur towards a just social order.  We owe it to ourselves and the future to achieve this goal, and it is eminently clear that SB921 is a concrete, achievable accomplishment that is pivotal in our social progress.         Pura Vida, ~~Bernie Macdonald



 

SB921 History

June 30th   *    Removed from consideration from this legislative session

June 4th  ****   Full Senate - Passed 25 yes, 14 no on strict party lines.

May 29th ***  Appropriations - Passed out with 8 yes, 5 no

May 7th    **  Health and Human Services – Passed out with 8 yes, 3 no, 2 abstaining

April 30th   *  Insurance – Passed out with 5 yes, 3 no, 1 abstaining.

 

BC Macdonald 937-4352, sphc@mcn.org



 

Sample Letter of Support for SB 921

The Health Care for All Californians Act

 

Please send letters of support by Fax or Mail to:

 

Senator Sheila Kuehl

State Capitol, Room 4032

Sacramento, CA  95814

Fax: (916) 324-4823

 

Use this sample letter as a model in writing your own letter of support and please send on your organization's letterhead.

 

 


(date), 2003

 

Senator Kuehl

State Capitol, Room 4032

Sacramento, CA  95814

Fax 916.324.4823

 

Re: Support for SB 921 (Kuehl)

 

Dear Senator Kuehl:

 

I am writing to express my organization's support for SB 921, the Health Care for All Californians Act, which establishes a single comprehensive health plan for all California residents at no new cost to the state.

 

Our health care crisis cannot be fixed with partial measures.  Over the last decade, California has tried many incremental reforms, which have not been successful.  Instead of improving, California's health care system has deteriorated.  SB 921 corrects the underlying problems of inefficiency, waste and partial coverage that continue to undermine California's health care system. 

 

All Californians lose when hospitals close or when emergency rooms are crowded with people who can not receive needed care in a doctor's office because they have no health insurance.  All Californians lose when billions of dollars are wasted on unnecessary administrative costs.  All Californians and their employers lose when rapidly rising health insurance costs threaten health insurance coverage.

 

Our current health care system spends between 20-30% of all healthcare dollars on administrative costs.  Under the single payer system proposed by SB 921, administrative costs are reduced to 5% of the health care budget, saving $14 billion dollars that will be redirected into health care services for all Californians.  Additionally, the single payer system proposed by SB 921 would lower the cost of pharmaceuticals through bulk purchasing, creating further savings.  These savings would also be recaptured to provide additional coverage for Californians.

 

California needs a health care system that works for everyone and treats everyone equally.  With seven million Californians living without insurance, Californians need a system that provides the security of knowing that they will never lose health insurance because they can't afford it, or because they have a pre-existing condition or because they lose their job.  SB 921 provides such a system.

 

We strongly support SB 921.

 

Sincerely,

 

 

(your name)

(your position)

(your organization)

 

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Please Post a copy of your submission at your reception area, cash register, bulletin board or web site!

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Please share this opportunity with many business and organizational friends to include them in this epic program for a more just society. The benefits of this bill cover a broad continuum of human benefit and personal involvement will be a very satisfying aspect.

 


Information:

SB 921 Questions & answers    SB921 Fact Sheet  SB 921 Fact Sheet (800k .PDF)       http://www.healthcareoptions.ca.go   SB921 History

Organizations:

http://www.healthcareforall.org   http://www.pnhp.org

 


 

For the ultimate, eye opening, fiscal facts on Health Care:  KFF State Health Facts Online

 


 

Need further convincing?:

 

Mexico signs Universal Health Plan into law on 5/14/03

 

 

SEVEN REASONS WE CAN'T AFFORD BASIC HEALTH CARE   From The LA Weekly --  Jan.'03 Edition

1. UnitedHealth Group Inc.          CEO William W. McGuire's 2001 earnings: $58,103,499 (salary, bonus, perks/benefits, deferred payments, exercised stock options); stock value: $378,196,614.

2. First Health Group Corp.  Outgoing CEO James C. Smith's 2001 earnings: $15,282,823; stock value: $12,216,080.

3. CIGNA Corp.           CEO H. Edward Hanway's 2001 earnings (approx.): $14,055,582; stock value: $8,258,653.

4. WellPoint Health Networks Inc.  CEO Leonard Schaeffer's 2001 earnings: $10,062,379; stock value: $60,712,587.

5. Aetna Inc.                                        CEO John W. Rowe's 2001 earnings: $  5,557,896; stock value: $5,864,153.

6. PacifiCare Health Systems Inc. CEO Howard G. Phanstiel's 2001 earnings: $  1,431,039; stock value: $1,181,251.

7. Health Net Inc.                                  CEO Jay M. Gellert's 2001 earnings: $     757,487; stock value: $11,171,250.

—Jennifer Price                                                            Total     $105,250,705
----------------------
From 2001 annual reports to shareholders, available at www.sec.gov/edgar.shtml. Information on CEOs of the major private health-insurance companies operating in Southern California — Bruce Bodaken of Blue Shield of California, David M. Lawrence (outgoing) of Kaiser Foundation Health Plan, Howard E. Davis of Universal Care — is not readily available.

Workers’ Comp Heading For ‘Collapse,’ Garamendi Warns
http://www.latimes.com/news/printedition/california/la-me-garamendi1may01,1,6456244.story?coll=la%2Dheadlines%2Dpe%2Dcalifornia
State Insurance Commissioner John Garamendi warned legislators Wednesday that unless major reforms cutting costs are adopted this year, the state's workers' compensation insurance system "faces total collapse." The program has been beset with financial problems in recent years, with many carriers dropping out of the business because it's not profitable. That has left a state-run fund responsible for at least half of the policies held by California employees. Officials said litigation and high fraud costs have contributed to a situation in which California has among the highest premiums but pays among the lowest benefits of any state.

April 24, 2003 By ADAM NAGOURNEY
Representative Richard A. Gephardt called for repealing resident Bush's tax cut and using the money to provide health insurance for nearly every American.

http://www.nytimes.com/2003/04/24/national/24DEMS.html?ex=1052243825&ei=1&en=4c1c547b34317fae

As have Kucinich and Dean!

San Francisco Chronicle poll, 5/1/03
Results:
77% - Create single-payer system
3% - Make employers "play or pay"
2% - Restore clinics' budgets
14% - Make cuts, we can't afford the system we've got
3% - Take two aspirin and call Congress in the morning

About 1100 people voted in this poll, which totally lacks any scientific validity. But the poll does make one very important point. The California State Legislature is currently evaluating both an employer mandate model and a single payer model of reform. This poll demonstrates that legislators should not automatically dismiss the single payer model because it is not "politically feasible."


BC Macdonald, Albion, CA sphc@mcn.org