Oakland Tribune
Aug. 8, 2003
Health care proposals featured at forum Fate of reform plans uncertain in light of gubernatorial unrest ,By Rebecca Vesely
Promising to “keep going until I die or pass this bill,” State Sen. Sheila Kuehl, D-Santa Monica, pitched her plan for a universal health care system to a largely receptive crowd Thursday afternoon.
“I’m not talking about short-term fixes,” Kuehl said. “I’m talking about building a system slowly that will be comparable to Social Security or Medicare.”
Kuehl’s so-called single-payer bill, S.B. 921, would do away with employer-based coverage and install a government-run system akin to Canada’s. It would consolidate financing into a state fund and provide a minimum standard of care for all residents.
Another health care bill, sponsored by (Senate) leader John Burton,
D-SanFrancisco, called “pay or play,”… would require employers to cover a baseline of their workers’ health care or pay into a pool that would then cover the workers.
U.S. Rep. Pete Stark, D-Fremont, told the crowd that a state bill was the best hope of reforming health care. Bills passed by Congress and the Senate last month to add prescription drugs to Medicare, by contrast, are “lousy” and “useless,” he said.”I’m counting on the good state Legislature and the continuing service of Gov. Gray Davis to make this happen,” Stark said.
The Oct. 7 election to recall Davis could affect the prospects of both bills. Little is known about where the many candidates stand on health care.Davis has not taken a position on any of the health care reform bills.
http://www.oaklandtribune.com/Stories/0,1413,82~1865~1559248,00.html
Comment: In a well functioning democracy, the citizens have an obligation
to be informed on the important issues facing society. Current polls indicate that Californians are about to elect Arnold Schwarzenegger as governor even though he has not yet expressed any of his views on the crucial issues currently facing the state.
California is in the midst of a health care crisis. Gov. Davis’ silence on reform is unforgivable. But failure of the state’s citizens to ask the hard questions before deciding on how to vote is even more unforgivable.