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Los Angeles Times
By George Skelton
January 22, 2007
SACRAMENTO--The most volatile subjects in California
politics today, arguably, are taxes and illegal immigration.
Either or both could trip up Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger
and Democratic legislative leaders in their ambitious
quests to overhaul California's healthcare system.
Republican lawmakers are warning that they won't support
any bill that raises taxes to help pay for universal
healthcare or subsidizes medical insurance for illegal
immigrants.
Without GOP help, Schwarzenegger and Democrats won't
be able to obtain the necessary two-thirds majority vote
in each house to pay for a substantial expansion of healthcare
coverage.
If the governor and Democrats decree that Schwarzenegger's
proposed taxes really are "fees"--and thus require only
a majority vote--then they will have failed to achieve
the necessary broad, bipartisan support to make their
healthcare concoction politically sustainable. That will
invite inevitable court challenges and/or a ballot referendum
to repeal the measure.
That's what happened in 2004. Business interests--backed
by Schwarzenegger--sponsored a referendum that repealed
a Democratic act requiring employers to offer their workers
health insurance or pay into a state coverage pool. This
time, the Republican governor is advocating a similar "play
or pay" scheme.
Schwarzenegger persists in living in denial about his
proposed tax increases, apparently spooked by his campaign
pledge not to raise taxes. He wants to seize 2% of doctors'
receipts and 4% of the hospitals' to help pay for universal,
affordable healthcare, and has been spinning it as a "fee."
Now, the governor also is contending that he's merely
digging into the medical providers' pockets for a "loan" because,
in the end, they'll be getting back higher Medi-Cal rates
and more patient business.
"It's not a tax, just a loan, because it does not go
for general [spending]," the governor told the Sacramento
Bee last week. "It goes back to healthcare. I think it's
the important fact here, that you take it for healthcare."
No, governor, the important fact is that you'd "take
it." To take is to tax when you're
talking about people's incomes.
And every loan I've ever heard about is voluntary.
A forced "loan," it seems to me, is either a tax or a
stickup.
Schwarzenegger should shelve the semantics games and
focus his attention on defending the proposed tax hikes
and promoting universal healthcare, even for illegal
immigrants. As he points out, employers and families
already are hit with a "hidden tax" amounting to 17%
of premium costs to care for the uninsured and compensate
for miserly Medi-Cal reimbursements.
Illegal immigrants are entitled, by federal law, to
costly care at clogged emergency rooms even if they're
not insured. Schwarzenegger logically contends that they
should be cared for in a clinic or doctor's office where
it's less expensive for taxpayers and premium buyers.
But good luck selling that politically.
A recent statewide poll by the Survey and Policy Research
Institute at San Jose State University found that only
32% of registered voters favor guaranteeing health insurance
for illegal immigrants; 58% are opposed.
That poll, however, did not ask specifically about
illegal immigrant children. And there's other
polling evidence that indicates California voters have
a soft spot for undocumented kids.
Asked how they'd react to a state program assuring
that every child has health insurance "regardless of
their immigration status," 55% were supportive; 40% opposed.
The vast majority--83%--agreed with this statement: "The
reality is there are children who are undocumented immigrants
who live in our communities now and attend local schools.
Their health affects us all, especially our own kids,
and we should make sure every child stays healthy."
The pollster, Ben Tulchin, conducted the survey for
United Way of California. He also has conducted focus
groups on the emotional issue.
"Voters make a distinction between adults and kids," Tulchin
asserts. "They say kids are kids, you can't blame them.
They didn't choose to come here. They followed their
parents. You shouldn't punish the kids by denying them
health insurance."
There are wide ranges of numbers circulating, but I
like these from the California HealthCare Foundation:
Of the 6.6 million uninsured Californians, 1.3 million
are children. Of these kids, 763,000 could be eligible
for some government program--Medi-Cal or Healthy Families--but
aren't enrolled. Most of the rest are illegal immigrants
and ineligible.
The Schwarzenegger proposal--and one by Assembly Speaker
Fabian Nuñez (D-Los Angeles)--would expand Medi-Cal
and Healthy Families eligibility, simplify enrollment,
subsidize where needed and bring in the undocumented
kids. The feds would pay most of the bill. The state
would kick in perhaps $400 million.
So that particular feature of Schwarzenegger's healthcare
revamp looks doable. It's low-hanging fruit that should
be picked.
But the governor doesn't like it when somebody suggests
that perhaps the Capitol should move incrementally on
healthcare and start with insuring all children.
"No, absolutely not," he told the Sacramento Press Club
last week. "We should take it as a comprehensive approach.
We have the talent here; we have the intelligence in
our Capitol to get our act together."
I'm not so sure. Not with term limits, extremist lawmakers
produced by gerrymandering and special interests ganging
up on all sides.
Meantime, kids' germs aren't conservative or liberal,
documented or undocumented. They spread indiscriminately,
regardless of immigration status or tax brackets.
If nothing else, the politicians should protect every
child.
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