Remembering Reagan
By Peter SchragCalifornia Progress Report
Every now and then, the fractious California legislature can still achieve unanimity. It accomplished it again this summer in the name of Ronald Reagan, when both houses passed, and Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger signed, two bills to honor the late president and former governor.
With some effort, they provide a wonderful opportunity to rescue the man from the mythic fog in which some of his latter-day acolytes have shrouded him.
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Arnold Ignores Kennedy Legacy in Vetoing Farmworker Overtime
By Randy ShawWhile it’s no longer news that California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger is a fraud (which helps explains poll numbers that are lower than George W. Bush and the pre-recall Gray Davis), his veto this week of an overtime bill for California farmworkers is particularly disgraceful. Schwarzenegger’s wife, Maria Shriver, is the daughter of Peace Corps founder Sargent Shriver.
Her mother was Eunice Kennedy Shriver – sister of John, Robert and Ted Kennedy. Schwarzenegger likes to say how influenced he was by his father-in-law, but his record in office exposes that lie. No politician fought harder for farmworker rights than Robert Kennedy, and the Governor’s veto insults the Kennedy legacy.
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Patients Should Be First Priority
By Anthony WrightHealth Access California
On Jan. 1, 2014, at least two million Californians will become newly eligible for Medi-Cal; but this is not to say that they will magically be enrolled when the ball drops in Times Square. Without carefully laying the proper groundwork, this and other provisions of health reform law won't have their full impact.
How to best make this transition for Medi-Cal, which currently serves more than seven million Californians -- including low-income children, parents, seniors and people with disabilities -- is just one of the key goals through the current negotiations between the state and federal governments over the program's next five years. The stakes are high on these and other issues, all considered as part of discussions around a new Medicaid waiver.
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Insurance Companies Find Way To Invest Benefit Money Even After Policyholders Die
By JG PrestonProtect Consumer Justice
Here’s how I thought life insurance worked:
1) I buy a life insurance policy.
2) I pay my premiums under the terms of the policy.
3) I die.
4) My beneficiary receives a check for the benefit amount specified in the policy.
Silly me. I forgot the insurance company’s purpose is to make money, even if it means my beneficiary doesn’t receive the benefit right away.
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