Multiple Changes at ACMC

First, as Arnold Schwarzenegger's election to governor of California was confirmed, Tim Redmond of the SF Guardian pointed out on KPFA that this is terrible news for large cities and the urban poor. Schwarzenegger will most likely balance the budget by cutting money that flows through counties to provide services such as health care safety nets. Thus, we have an even bigger problem than we did last week, when the Alameda County Medical Center's budget deficit was at $55 million and growing.

Next, to recap this month's events, CEO Ken Cohen was "let go" by the previous Board of Trustees, with a generous two-year severance package that has angered employees and Supervisors alike. The Trustees stated that they had great faith and trust in Cohen, but he was being made ineffective by the County's interference with the running of the Medical Center. He agreed to stay on for 60 days to help a new administration transition in. Then, at the September BOT meeting, Trustees Maria Gallo, Robert Phillips, Barry Siegel, Bob Blackburn, and Denise Martin resigned, stating deep regret and anger at their inability to resolve the tensions between their Board and the Board of Supervisors. They had proven to be dedicated, informed advocates of the Medical Center, and Vote Health members were not surprised but were pained at the loss of the expertise they provided.

Out of a total of 11 seats on the ACMC Board of Trustees, there are now two "old timers," Dr. Ted Rose, Chair of Internal Medicine at Highland, and Richard Warren, a retired hospital administrator. New appointees include Stanley Schiffman, a management consultant, Ilene Weinreb, former Mayor of Hayward and now Chair of the BOT, Joe Phan, an MBA who will head the Finance Committee, and Barbara Price, a real estate agent who is CEO of PK Consultants. This Board's first meeting made attendees painfully aware of the lack of knowledge about health care systems in general and the Medical Center in specific among the new members. This is unfortunate at a time when the crisis of administration is as severe as it is. No new members are being appointed at this time; when all six attend a meeting, there is a quorum that allows decisions to be made.

There are proposals to form two or possibly three "stakeholder" committees, including one to focus on finances, another to monitor overall direction and governance of the Medical Center. The latter will either be called a "Blue Ribbon Commission," or that will be a separate body, trying to pull together politicians, trustees, administration/medical staff, labor, and others to steer the ACMC ship for approximately 2 months until its direction is clearer.

In response to this emergency, the Save ACMC Coalition had its third meeting at Local 250's office on October 3rd. In addition to community activists and union representatives, aides from the offices of local representatives Don Perata, Wilma Chan, Liz Figueroa and Loni Hancock also attended. We discussed the possible committees being convened by members of the Board of Supervisors; SEIU Local 250 is pushing the idea of the Blue Ribbon Commission.

Vote Health continues to focus its energy on a petition drive to support a ballot measure for March 2004. It is our expectation that all of the Supervisors will vote to put it on the ballot. You can print out copies of "Seven Things You Can Do" to support ACMC, as well a copy of the petition, by going to www.votehealth.net/articles/save_acmc.html, or calling us at 510-653-1626 and giving us a fax number or address you'd like them sent to.

SB2 and SB921 - Our View

While last week's passage of Senate Bill 2 would provide health care coverage for an additional one million people in California (if it gets past legal hurtles), it is a far cry from our vision for universal, single payer health care. Here are some reasons why:

1.The irrational link between employment and health care coverage is not broken, in fact, it is strengthened.

2.The bill does nothing for those who are unemployed and/or who work for a company with fewer than 20 employees.

3.None of the systemic problems of our current system, such as denial of care by insurance companies, are addressed.

4.High premiums and administrative overhead costs remain-much of consumers' health care dollar still will not go for direct health care services.

5.Co-pays, often prohibitive, and high out-of-pocket fees for uncovered services remain.

6.Over six million people are still uninsured in California, with many more who are underinsured.

It is important for single payer advocates to recognize these points and continue to raise them while we fight for a fair, accessible and cost-efficient system for all.

Meanwhile, vigorous "behind the scenes" activity for SB921 continues in Sacramento and across the state. The bill will continue to be heard by committees in the Assembly in the next legislative session, and hopefully move to the governor's desk (which now takes on a different meaning). Senator Kuehl is writing the specifics of the single payer funding mechanism for the system and is consulting with many stakeholder groups. Health Care for All California chapters and affiliates, including Vote Health's Single Payer Committee, have been conducting speakers training for the bill. If you are interested in signing up for a training, or would like more information, call Sue Bergman at 510-540-7085.

Two Openings on Vote Health's Executive Committee

Long time Vote Health activists Margot Smith and Sue Bergman have resigned from their Executive Committee positions, although both plan to remain active with the organization. We thank them deeply for their many years of dedication, advocacy, and heartfelt conviction that health care should be a right, not a privilege.

We will be accepting nominations and voting for two replacement members at our October 20th meeting. The bylaws state that "A person shall be eligible for nomination and election if he/she has been a Vote Health member in good standing for 3 continuous months. "Good standing" requires payment of annual dues." The balance of the term is 14 months; nominations for a new Exec will take place in January, 2005, with elections the following month.

Newsletter committee:
Nancy M. Friedman, Sue Bergman, Kay Eisenhower
Our thanks to CA Nurses Association for their help in producing this newsletter.