Universal health bill advances -- but faces veto
Aurelio Rojas
Sacramento Bee
Sixteen months ago, while working as a contract registered nurse in San Francisco, Cynthia Campbell purchased a short-term health insurance policy.
Blue Cross of California refused to extend her policy after she used the plan once for a minor infection, Campbell said, and in a pinch she bought another short-term policy from Blue Shield of California.
Last summer, she worked a Friday shift, got sick over the weekend, and a week later was diagnosed with two aggressive forms of cancer -- rhabdomyosarcoma and adenosarcoma.
On July 20, her health insurance policy runs out and no one will insure her, Campbell told the Assembly Health Committee on Tuesday while testifying in support of Senate Bill 840.
The single-payer health care plan by state Sen. Sheila Kuehl, D-Santa Monica, would abolish private insurance and replace it with universal coverage administered by the state.
"I'm too young for Medicare, and I make too much money for Medi-Cal," Campbell, 53, told the panel. "But one eligibility worker told me how I could get Medi-Cal: 'Get pregnant, get the Medi-Cal card, abort the baby, and keep the card.' This is my only option."
SB 840 cleared the Democratic-controlled committee on a 12-5 vote but faces a certain veto by Republican Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger. Schwarzenegger has criticized Kuehl's plan as "government-run health care."
July 4, 2007 at 12:00 AM | Permalink | Blog Reactions
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