[Sosfbay-discuss] Fw: Statement from Senator Leno re: SB 810

[Caroline Yacoub]

--- On Thu, 5/28/09, Lynn Huidekoper <lynn_huidekoper at hotmail.com> wrote:


From: Lynn Huidekoper <lynn_huidekoper at hotmail.com>
Subject: Statement from Senator Leno re: SB 810
To: "Lynn Huidekoper" <lynn_huidekoper at hotmail.com>
Date: Thursday, May 28, 2009, 7:42 PM




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Our Single Payer bill, SB810, is on hold(suspense) due to the serious Calif. budget crisis. Although the taxes to fund the system are not in SB810 there is a Premium Commission in it. This Commission which has 3 health policy economists, a Governor's appointee, the Legislative Analyst(who does the cost analysis),etc. would need to be funded in order to study and come up with a financial funding(premium)structure for the system.
It therefore becomes a 2 year bill where it will be re-introduced in 2010 as SB840 was done several times.
In the meantime we can build a movement through education in the meantime. Esp. businesses and Republicans. We will also work to get a pro-Single Payer Democrat Governor elected Nov. 2010.
 

Statement from Senator Mark Leno

Today, in response to California’s ongoing and unprecedented budget crisis, the Senate Appropriations Committee was forced to hold a large majority of the bills on its suspense calendar. SB 810, our bill to establish single payer universal health care in California, was not an exception.

Faced with the loss of 25% of our General Fund revenues, the legislature must direct its undivided attention toward avoiding the gruesome cuts proposed by the Governor, which would fundamentally dismantle our most basic health, social, and educational infrastructures. 

Let me be clear in saying that SB 810 is alive and well in the Senate Appropriations Committee, and the next opportunity to move the bill will be in January, 2010.  This does not represent a change to our overall strategy for SB 810 to be a 2-year bill, nor does it affect or prevent us from doing the important work we already are doing to advocate and educate the public about the importance of single payer in our communities and in the legislature.

In fact, single payer health care is ultimately our best hope for a stable and secure health care system in the future, which would then help us avoid the same kinds of painful future cuts we are feeling today.  

Together we will continue our work to build a grassroots movement and use this time productively to finally bring single payer to California. 

 

__________________________________________
Sara Elizabeth Rogers
Consultant, Health
California State Senate
State Capitol Room 2031
Sacramento, CA  95814
(916) 651-4646



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