Medi-Cal Restructuring:The Other Shoe Waiting to Drop.

Medi-Cal / Medicaid Restructuring:
The Other Shoe Waiting to Drop.
What the government has done to Medicare,
they want to repeat with Medi-Cal / Medicaid.

What: Meeting on Medi-Cal / Medicaid restructuring.
When: Tuesday, January 20, 1:00 PM.
Where: Unitarian-Univeralist Church, 1187 Franklin (Geary), San Francisco
Contact: Michael Lyon, Gray Panther Health Committee, 415-215-7575

San Francisco Gray Panthers is hosting an informational meeting on the threats to Medi-Cal and Medicaid in the face of the worst state budget deficits in fifty years, persistent long-term unemployment, growing healthcare costs, 20 million new seniors with chronic diseases on the horizon, and a government determined to overturn the advances of the 1930s New Deal and the 1960s Great Society. The threats include drastic budget cuts in the short term and major restructuring in the long term. Members and guests will present and discuss all of these issues.

Medicaid (Medi-Cal in California) is the nation's largest single insurance plan, covering 47 million people. This includes: * 12 million poor elderly and disabled adults, * one in five children, * poor pregnant women, * 60% of the elderly in nursing homes, * and disabled adults. It provides basic hospitalization, doctor’s visits, prescriptions, long-term care, tests, and many other services.

Currently, Medicaid is run by states in accordance with federal guidelines and is financed by Federal-State cost-sharing, where each state dollar is matched by one to three federal dollars, without limit. In the future, the government is planning block-grants, where the federal government gives states fixed amounts with minimal yearly increases, and states are forced to determine how to administer Medicaid with the reduced funding. It is an end to federal entitlements: states would be forced to decide who gets Medicaid and what the benefits are.

Families USA (5-27-03) estimates the loss due to block-granting would be almost a half trillion dollars over ten years, with loss of healthcare for nearly 690,00 seniors, nearly 3.9 million children, over 1.2 million disabled, and approximately 1.7 million other adults. Long-term unemployment would make matters even worse.

All of us, seniors, adults, and children, need a movement to fight off these attacks. We hope this informational meeting can help