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California | Santa Cruz Indymedia | Government & Elections | Health, Housing, and Public ServicesPreventative Health Care Threatened/Call NOW!
Preventative health care positions are being threatened by state budget cuts and may soon disappear since they are not part of mandated nurse-patient ratios. San Francisco is looking to lose 30 percent of its home health care program for Medi-Cal patients. In less heavily populated areas, including Monterey and Humboldt counties, one home health care nurse makes the difference between care or no care for people isolated by lack of public transportation. PHOTO: Health care activists in Mountain View, California demonstrate for senior care.
As the state of California makes sweeping budget cuts, services that are thrown out are the ones that appear the easiest to cut upfront, even though the long-term consequences can be devastating. Preventative care provided by home health nurses is on the chopping block. Health care activist Richard Salzman of Arcata, California is working with Assembly member Patty Berg to save the Preventive Health Care for Adults Program. "These next few days are critical," he said. "Just as an example of what is at stake, rural residents of Humboldt County where I live, especially seniors, rely on visits from a home health nurse for preventative care. In some cases it is the only health care they receive. Sadly, the senate wants to cut this state program completely." Home health care nurses support a variety of homebound patients including new mothers establishing lactation (breast feeding) and parents with small children who have poor access to transportation. He wants people to call their State Senator or Assembly Member and ask them to "continue funding for Health Screen for Adults". It is a simple call. Phone numbers of key members who most need to hear from their constituents are listed below. When you call, you can say you are calling about an item that is in conference committee. A phone call can be as simple as this: "Please continue funding for HEALTH SCREEN FOR ADULTS, item #4265-111-0001, issue #379." They might ask for your name address, and you're done! Mr. Saltzman can be reached at rs [at] salzint.com 707.822-5500 (phone &fax) if you would like more information before making that all-important phone call. http://web.ucsf.edu/synapse/articles/2008/May/8/preventive.html For article by UCSF nursing student Kristina Hung on the current state budget cuts that threaten preventative healthcare. Senator Denise Moreno Ducheny (San Diego, Imperial, Riverside) 619.409.7690 Senator Mike Machado (Sacramento, San Joaquin, Solano, Yolo) 916.651.4005 Assembly Member Roger Niello (Sacramento, Placer) 916.319.2005 Senator Bob Dutton (Riverside, San Bernardino) 951.715-2625 Assembly Member John Laird (Santa Cruz, Santa Clara, Monterey) 831.425.1503 Assembly Member Mark Leno (San Francisco) 415.557-3013
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