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S.F.’s affordable health care ready for soft launch
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Related Topics: SAN FRANCISCO
SAN FRANCISCO (Map, News) - A new program to ensure that every San Franciscan has access to affordable health care will begin enrolling its first patients next week at two Chinatown public health centers.
San Francisco made national headlines when the program was announced last year, and received recent praise from filmmaker Michael Moore, who came to The City last week to promote his latest documentary, “Sicko,” an indictment of the American health care system.
Authored by Supervisor Tom Ammiano and backed by Mayor Gavin Newsom, the plan, recently renamed Healthy San Francisco, offers access to health care — at a sliding-scale cost — to all 82,000 uninsured San Francisco residents, regardless of income, immigration status or pre-existing medical conditions.
The $196 million program will be predominantly funded by redirecting existing Health Department resources, but The City is banking on $28 million a year to come from business owners who are not providing health care to their employees and approximately $56 million to be raised through sliding-scale monthly fees and co-payments from participants.
For example, under Healthy San Francisco, an uninsured city resident making $30,000 a year, working at a medium-size San Francisco company, would be asked to pay $25 per month for the program, and their employer would be required to contribute $187 per month.
Business leaders have protested the mandated spending, which requires all employers with 20 workers or more to invest $1.17 to $1.85 for each employee hour worked for health care. San Francisco’s Golden Gate Restaurant Association sued over the legislation, claiming the employer-spending mandate violates federal law. The lawsuit is still pending.
After next week’s limited launch, The City will begin a broader rollout of Healthy San Francisco in September, mostly with current Department of Public Health clients. In January 2008, full enrollment will begin.
Comments from Examiner Readers
9:21 PM MST on Tue., Jun. 26, 2007 re: "S.F.’s affordable health care ready for soft launch"
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8:29 PM MST on Tue., Jun. 26, 2007
re: "S.F.’s affordable health care ready for soft launch"
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EXAMINATOR said:
Sliding Scale Health care already exists, even for the Examiner Reader who's comments appear below. (YOU CAN EVEN GET DENTAL CARE THIS WAY) Just go fill out a financial statement at SF General or one of the Neighborhood Health Centers like Tom Waddell on the Alley way behind the SAN FRANCISCO DEPT. OF HEALTH HEADQUARTERS across from City Hall, you know the building seen in the original version of "Invasion of the Body Snatchers" movie with Donald Sutherland. At Tom Waddell you can even get flu shots etc. Of course at that health center you'll be surrounded by sick people some with AIDS or TB and some of them look like drug addicts, because hey ARE drug addicts and they're willing to admit it! Of course if you want Gold Plated healthcare PAY FOR IT! Or if you need immunizations to go on a Safari or trekking in Nepal you can get those right there at the Dept. of Public Health, or better yet get a job with the CITY and you won't have to get treatment at one of their "Health Centers"!
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Examiner Reader said:
Well, as an older reader who fell off the health grid when the dot com invasion and bust gutted SF jobs and couldn't find another, I can say it doesn't provide health care for me. It doesn't provide any assistance to the thousands of self employed individuals and entrepreneurs who provide services to San Francisco and its businesses, while the burden on larger employers and our clients will serve to cut our income. Universal health care is necessary, but not at the cost of San Francisco businesses and not to the exclusion of the self employed. Spend the effort to force California to create a workable blanket insurance plan for everyone rather than empowering an already out of control health department to mismanage yet another program.
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