Posts Tagged: vulnerable

Opinion

Who stands to lose in California’s gas price debate?

People protesting the high cost of gasoline at a Los Angeles site during June 2022. (Photo: Ringo Chiu, via Shutterstock)

OPINION: In the past six months, the volatility of fuel prices has been a major concern for Californians as well as a contentious issue between politicians and oil refiners. Even with gas prices decreasing upwards of $0.70 a gallon, the average price per gallon now is significantly more than it was this time last year.

Opinion

What are the impacts of Kaiser’s no-bid contract on Medi-Cal?

The Kaiser Permanente hospital in San Diego, a 617,000-square foot facility. (Photo: Roaming Panda Photos)

OPINION: In giving private health care giant Kaiser Permanente a broad, no-bid Medi-Cal contract that is light on detail, the state could unwind over 40 years of locally driven health care coordination and collaboration for the most vulnerable among us.

News

Capitol staffers tell job gripes and slam bad bosses — anonymously

Night view of California's Capitol in Sacramento. (Photo: Kit Leong, via Shutterstock)

Inspired by their union-yearning congressional counterparts, state Capitol employees have taken to social media with anonymous posts about bad bosses and a percolating desire for the same bargaining rights enjoyed by other state workers. The Instagram account, “DearCaStaffers,” had about 2,700 followers by Thursday. That was 400 more than the day before.

Opinion

Governor: Don’t stigmatize California’s homeless

A view of a homeless encampment along Central Avenue in downtown Los Angeles. (Photo: Matt Gush, via Shutterstock)

OPINION: At his May press conference for the state budget revision, which detailed unprecedented action to address homelessness in California, Gov. Newsom referred to California freeways and underpasses as “too damn dirty.” The comment felt much too tongue-in-cheek for the issue at hand, and also much too similar to “The Rent is Too Damn High” slogan popularized by New York politician Jimmy McMillan.

Opinion

Child care — the core of a healthy, functioning society

A woman and her baby boy on the beach in San Diego. (Photo: Sarmiento Photography, via Shutterstock)

OPINION: For nearly a quarter of a century, Parent Voices, a partnership of parents throughout California, has led an annual event on the grounds of California’s Capitol called “Stand for Children Day.” Each May, parent and youth leaders march side-by-side before meeting with legislators to advocate for policies that protect the state’s children and their families.

Opinion

Eliminating natural gas for electricity carries risks

A pipeline carrying natural gas near San Jose. (Photo: Sundry Photography, via Shutterstock)

OPINION: Climate change is one of the most important challenges of our time.  And in California, we have felt the brunt of both the economic impacts of climate-driven disasters, as well as aggressive technology innovation that is trying to address it.

News

CA120: California’s congressional battleground

Outside the House office of California Republican Congressman Darrell Issa, who plans to retire, following an apparent uptick in Democratic strength in his district. (Photo: Katherine Welles)>

The national narrative on the 2018 election goes something like this: The first midterm election of a new president always goes strongly against the party in power. President Trump has been more unpopular in his first term than any in the modern age of polling, so this could get very bad for Republicans.

Opinion

Oversight urged for 340B drug discount program

A woman shops for medications in a pharmacy. (Photo: Tyler Olson, via Shutterstock

OPINION: Mark Twain once proclaimed, “The government of my country snubs honest simplicity, but fondles artistic villainy, and I think I might have developed into a very capable pickpocket if I had remained in the public service a year or two.” These humorous words may elicit a smile, but clearly ring true more than a century later, and most certainly apply to the 340B drug discount program.

News

Community health centers battle for funding

Lisa Zeelander, a medical doctor at Valley Community Healthcare in North Hollywood, examines patient Pamela Richardson, 60, on Wednesday, Dec. 21, 2016. (Photo: Heidi de Marco/KHN)

It’s been nearly two weeks since a crucial deadline passed to continue funding for community health centers, the nonprofit facilities that deliver care to the poor and uninsured in California and across the country. Congress is still squabbling over the details, advocates are still scrambling to get the funding renewed and the centers are starting to plan for the bottom line.

Opinion

Spending cap-and-trade funds: Give priority to most vulnerable

Pollution over Long Beach on a clear day. (Photo: Katharine Moore)

OPINION: Now that it’s reconvened, the state Legislature faces critical decisions about where and how to spend over $1 billion raised by the state’s cap-and-trade program to fight climate change. Those decisions will affect the lives, health and jobs of millions of Californians, and will have an outsized impact on those facing pollution and poverty.

Support for Capitol Weekly is Provided by: