Issues
Health Care
According to the latest data, 6.6 million Californians, or one-in-five residents, live without health insurance. Compared to national averages, California has a substantially higher burden of uninsured individuals and a substantially lower portion of individuals with employer-sponsored coverage. And as of April 2009, the economic downturn had forced an astounding 500,000 working-age Californians to lose their health insurance.
To offset the large number of uninsured, individuals and employers in California have been forced to pay some of the highest medical bills in the nation. Between 2000 and 2007, health care premiums for Californian families rose by 95.8 percent, while median earnings only rose by 19.3 percent. By 2040, an aging Californian population is expected to increase medical costs by an additional 15 percent.
Mayor Gavin Newsom isn’t waiting for the politicians in Sacramento to solve this problem – he’s created the only universal health care program in the country. In 2007, Mayor Newsom launched Healthy San Francisco to provide health care for all San Francisco residents. Remarkable for its simplicity, this groundbreaking program allows participants to select where they want to receive primary care from among dozens of hospitals and clinics, both public and private – no lengthy HMO paperwork and no denial of treatment. In a recent speech, President Barack Obama said: "Instead of just talking about health care, mayors like Gavin Newsom...have been ensuring that those in need receive it."
Healthy SF - 38,000 Previously Uninsured With Health Care: In just its first year, Healthy San Francisco expanded its health care services from 0 to 25,000 participants. As of March 2009, Healthy San Francisco had enrolled 38,259 previously uninsured San Franciscans. The program now enrolls new residents at a rate of about 600 new participants every week and is on pace to cover the vast majority of previously uninsured San Franciscans by the end of 2010.
Healthy SF - Over 500 Participating Employers and 29 Health Care Facilities: As of July of 2008, over 500 employers have opted into the city program and are now providing health care for over 16,000 employees that were formerly uninsured. Over 29 local health care facilities have joined Healthy San Francisco in conjunction with a variety of private physicians' groups and major national hospitals.
Healthy SF - Comprehensive Health Care Services: Healthy SF creates a partnership between hospitals and neighborhood health facilities to form “medical homes” for each participant – giving each patient access to all services in one geographic area. In addition to a “medical home”, each participant receives a primary physician, allowing a greater focus on preventive care, specialty care, urgent and emergency care, laboratory, inpatient hospitalization, radiology and pharmaceuticals.
Healthy Food and Wellness Centers in Schools: In partnership with the local school district, Mayor Newsom helped open salad bars at 25 public school cafeterias. In addition to organic and locally-sourced vegetables, Mayor Newsom helped add fresh fruits and whole-grain breads and muffins to encourage healthy eating among San Francisco youth. Mayor Newsom has also worked with the Department of Children, Youth and Their Families to implement the rollout of state-of-the art Health and Wellness Centers in San Francisco public schools. The centers provide students with free, confidential services in health care and prevention/early intervention programs as well as health education, reproductive health, mental health, substance use services and referral to primary health care providers.
Rebuild of San Francisco General Hospital: Mayor Newsom led the campaign to rebuild San Francisco General Hospital which had been deemed seismically unsafe by the state. As the region’s only Level One trauma facility, a rebuilt SF General will be a critical regional medical center in the case of a disaster. In addition to being the region's only acute-care facility equipped to respond to life-threatening injuries and catastrophic illnesses, SF General serves as a safety net for a population that would generally not be served by other regional hospitals. The bond proposal to rebuild SF General passed overwhelmingly by San Francisco voters in 2008.
By the end of 2010: Healthy San Francisco expects to have enrolled the majority of all previously uninsured San Franciscans. Funding comes from a variety of sources: city funds redirected from the previous costs of treating the uninsured, guaranteed federal funding, members' fees and co-payments and fees from participating businesses – all with the aim of reducing the cost of health care and the number of costly emergency visits. San Francisco has pioneered a new model for universal health care – a model that Mayor Newsom hopes to bring statewide to California.
Join Our Policy Team: Gavin Newsom believes that the best plan is a better idea. If you would like to share your ideas and insights on how to reshape California's Health Care policy, please email us at issues@gavinnewsom.com.
