Voters urged to bail out medical centers
County supervisors hosting town hall meetings to address Measure A
By Karen Holzmeister, STAFF WRITER, The Oakland Tribune
Article Last Updated: Tuesday, January 20, 2004 - 3:49:17 AM PST

HAYWARD -- For a dozen years, Olivia Campos of Hayward has counted on Alameda County medical clinics to help provide her family's health care.

Last week, Campos waited at the Winton Wellness Clinic, with 8-month-old son Antonio -- the youngest of her three children -- squirming in her arms as he awaited for a check-up.

Campos nodded yes when asked, through a Spanish language translator, if she had heard of Measure A on the March 2 ballot, which could raise $90 million a year for county medical programs, services and staffing.

However, Campos said, softly, "I don't know what I'll do" if the measure fails and many county medical services are curtailed or eliminated.

County Supervisor Gail Steele of Hayward shook her head as she listened to Campos' response.

"At least she knows what Measure A is," Steele said. "The general public doesn't have a clue what Measure A is. And if it doesn't pass, this situation will be more than a nightmare. It will be our own personal war."

Measure A asks county voters if they want to increase the current 8.25 percent sales tax by one-half of 1 percent (0.5 percent) to raise income for county hospitals, clinics and community medical services.

If Measure A doesn't pass, the measure's backers claim, there will be service cuts and closures at various medical center campuses. They include Highland Hospital in Oakland and Fairmont Hospital in San Leandro as well as clinics in Hayward, Newark and Oakland.

The medical center has a $71.6 million deficit. The county's own financial problems may result in service cutbacks and staff reductions during 2004, precluding any extra subsidies for medical expenses.

Steele and other supervisors hope to stave off the "war" to which she referred by hosting a series of town hall meetings, starting this week, to inform voters about the measure and to win their support.

Measure A, despite a campaign kitty with more than $100,000 already pledged, may face an uphill battle:

The early presidential primary on March 2, rather than the June date of prior years, leaves only two months for campaigning after the winter holidays.

The packed ballot includes other measures seeking voter approval to raise fees and taxes.

State measures include Proposition 57, the $15 billion economic recovery bond act proposed by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, and Proposition 55, a $12.3 billion measure to repair, upgrade and build new schools, colleges and universities.

Regionally, voters will be asked to raise tolls by $1 on the Bay Area's seven state-owned toll bridges. This would raise an estimated $125 million a year for bridge maintenance and operations.

Locally, voters in the Chabot-Las Positas Community College District will be asked to approve a $498 million bond to upgrade campuses in Hayward and Livermore. The 25- to 35-year tax annually would cost the average homeowner $19.88 for each $100,000 of assessed valuation.

The Measure A campaign -- with contributions already topping $100,000 -- is financed largely by county-employed physicians, labor unions that represent employees at the medical center campuses and nonprofit community clinics.

The ballot argument in favor of Measure A is signed by Steele; Bishop J.W. Macklin, the widely known and respected pastor of one of Hayward's largest African-American churches; Arthur Geen,executive vice president of the Alameda County Taxpayers' Association; county Fire Chief William McCammon; and Dr. Vin Sawhney, president of the Alameda-Contra Costa Medical Association.

By comparison, there is little organized opposition to the measure.

Berkeley physician Lance Montauk wrote the argument against Measure A. In the ballot argument, Montauk claims that poor financial management by the county in general -- and medical center administrators in particular -- has contributed to the medical center's dismal financial picture.

"Measure A is bad medicine," said Montauk, who also is the Republican candidate for the 14th Assembly District seat held by Assemblywoman Loni Hancock, D-Berkeley. "The wrong diagnosis, the wrong treatment, at the wrong time."

Meanwhile, as the days lead up to the election, staffers at county medical facilities do their work while many voice concerns.

"I'm worried," said Patricia Gutierrez, a 17-year county employee and medical translator at Hayward's Winton Wellness Center, where medical services include checkups for adult and pediatric patients, tuberculosis screening, women's health services and sexually transmitted disease screening.

"If this (Measure A) doesn't pass, private hospitals and doctors can't pick up all the (county-provided medical) services," said Steele. "If it's passed, I look for a two-year turnaround" in the medical center's financial situation."