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Group rallies support for bills
to improve coverage for children
San Jose Mercury News
April 14, 2005
By Aurelio Rojas
More than 3,000 people from throughout
California filed into the Sacramento Convention Center on
Wednesday night for a town hall-style meeting to rally support
for legislation to expand health care coverage for children.
The "Californians for Healthy Kids" campaign -
which includes health care, religious, labor and business
groups - seeks to build on enrollment gains in state programs
and local innovations in 10 counties.
Nearly 90 percent of children in the state
have health care coverage. But up to a million children do
not, including 25,000 in Sacramento County, according to various
studies.
Two proposed bills would provide funding
for a multiyear plan to fill the gap by leveraging state
funds to attract more federal money. Grants from foundations
such as the California Endowment and voluntary contributions
from small businesses also would be pooled to expand coverage.
SB 437 by Sen. Martha Escutia, D-Whittier,
was approved Wednesday by the Senate Health Committee on a
7-1 vote with George Runner, R-Lancaster, the lone dissenter.
AB 772 by Assemblywoman Wilma Chan, D-Oakland,
is scheduled to receive its initial committee hearing next
week.
The state's $9.1 billion budget deficit poses
the biggest obstacle for the proposed legislation. But supporters
say the annual price tag to the state - $119 million to $331
million, according to an analysis by PricewaterhouseCoopers
- makes the measures more viable than two universal health
care proposals in the Legislature.
Supporters also believe that covering all
children, for now, will be more palatable to the business
community than SB 2. That legislation would have required
employers to pay for health coverage for workers and dependents;
it was narrowly repealed by voters last year at the urging
of business groups.
Ted Lempert, president of Children Now, a
national organization based in Oakland, noted the new legislation
has support from important business groups, including the
Los Angeles Area Chamber of Commerce.
"With all that's going on in the Capitol
- and the political divisiveness - this is (legislation) that
can get done this year," said Lempert, a former Democratic
assemblyman.
The legislation also has broad support among
current Democrats in the Legislature, including state Senate
President Pro Tem Don Perata and Assembly Speaker Fabian
Núñez,
who were scheduled to address the town hall meeting.
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has not taken a
position. But a year ago, the Republican governor vowed that
"during my administration, I want to make sure that
every child will be insured and has health care."
Among the scheduled speakers Wednesday night
was Kim Belshé, Schwarzenegger's health and human
services secretary.
"The issue of every child in California
having health insurance is a high priority for the administration,"
said Nicole Evans-Kasabian, a spokeswoman for Belshé.
"Reflecting on that priority, the governor's
proposed budget has a number of items that aim to expand
enrollment in Medi-Cal and Healthy Families for Children
by improving outreach and enrollment."
The event was sponsored by PICO California,
a statewide network of faith-based community organizations,
and the 100 Percent Campaign, a coalition that includes the
Children's Defense Fund and the Children's Partnership.
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