Sacramento Bee

Cut Health Costs? Here's A Prescription | Sacramento Bee

Cecille Isidro — Sun, 01 Nov 2009 02:34:00 -0500

According to the New America Foundation, premiums in California have grown seven times faster than median household income. Even being the very best, ...

The Conversation: Cut Health Costs? Here's A Prescription

Erin Drankoski — Sat, 31 Oct 2009 09:58:00 -0400

There is widespread agreement that if federal health care reform passes, making it work will depend in great part on getting a handle on spiraling medical costs that already consume nearly one of every five dollars spent in the United States.

We Need to Fix How We Measure Poverty

Erin Drankoski — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 11:19:00 -0400

From climate change to redistricting, New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg and Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger have teamed up on a number of issues. It's time to add another to the list -- updating the antiquated and misleading way we measure poverty.

It may seem like an odd concern for the Republican duo. But Bloomberg took the lead on the issue last year when conditions in New York City were similar to those California faces today: The economy was down; need was rising; and public resources were constrained.

Law Would Engage More Teens in Voting

Erin Drankoski — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 06:31:00 -0400

It has been a tough year for California. The Golden State, known for decades as an innovator and agent of change, had to issue IOUs to pay its debts. Investment in the future, which used to be California's guiding vision, has taken a back seat to plugging the many holes in the leaky dike of our antiquated institutions.

Health Debate Short on Evidence-Based Science

Erin Drankoski — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 11:56:00 -0400

The public's faith in President Barack Obama's plan for health care reform is fading. Proposals ranging from the public insurance option to reimbursing physicians for end-of-life counseling are mired in a debate that's as overheated as August temperatures. Even the seemingly self-evident idea that the nation has a moral duty to make sure all citizens have basic access to health care is up for grabs. But there's one aspect of health care reform that California voters support almost universally: better medical evidence.

Yes, Virginia, 'Average' Californians Can Manage a Constitutional Convention

Cecille Isidro — Sun, 02 Aug 2009 19:58:00 -0400

As you ride the bus or freeway to work tomorrow, ask yourself: Can the person seated next to me, or driving past me, be trusted with the job of redesigning California's basic political and budgetary rules? Are "average Californians" ready to don the white powdered wigs to become the Founding Mothers and Fathers of a new California?

Is It About Health Care, or About Making Money?

Cecille Isidro — Sun, 02 Aug 2009 10:41:00 -0400

Just a few months ago, national health care reform seemed solidly on the path to congressional approval. A popular new president made it his top domestic priority and turned the process over to the leadership of large Democratic majorities in both houses. The path became rocky, though, with most Republicans and many conservative Blue Dog Democrats signaling concern.

Schwarzenegger Hopes IOUs Sway Budget Debate | Sacramento Bee

Cecille Isidro — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 02:02:00 -0400

But it's not clear that IOUs are sufficient to force lawmakers to close a deal, said Joe Mathews, Irvine senior fellow at the New America Foundation.

Big Health Insurer's Calls to Members Draws Criticism | Sacramento Bee

Cecille Isidro — Fri, 24 Apr 2009 02:06:00 -0400

It's no surprise that wellpoint and other stakeholders would want to take the pulse of the American public, said Jacob Hacker, a professor of political science and co-director for the Center for Health, Economic and Family Security at the University of ...

Everybody's Got a Stake in Reforming Health Care

Cecille Isidro — Sun, 29 Mar 2009 07:23:00 -0400

There is an encouraging – perhaps surprising – amount of agreement that health care in the United States must be reformed now. Key players in the debate, from Wal-Mart executives to labor union leaders, agree that reform should expand affordable health coverage to all, that no one should be denied insurance, and that government, employers and individuals should all share responsibility for funding health care.