Minutes: February, 13th Meeting of the San Diego Chapter of PNHP-California
Minutes of the Feb 13th Meeting of the San Diego Chapter of PNHP-CA
The meeting began shortly after 2 pm. Attending were (alphabetically) Manuel Belandres MD, Dawn & Dutch Dershem, Jennifer Doumas MD, Paul Friedman MD. Jessica Hayes, Sonya Hintz MD, Kathy Rallings, Claire Pratt, David Priver MD, Dan & Nancy Sandweiss MD, and Peter Seymour MD. Few of our regulars were there, and a number of new politically savvy non-MD’s came this time, as well as several physicians.
The agenda started with a period for self-introductions. Dawn introduced herself as a former teacher and a good recruiter; her husband is an engineer. Claire is burning with ideas and had a notebook at the ready. Kathy Rallings is a professional organizer for the CTA who is also head of the rather quiet HCA chapter in San Diego. Jessica Hayes is very active in progressive democrat circles and most knowledgeable. Manuel Belandres spoke at length about his experiences setting up a public clinic and what he had to overcome in the system to do it.
I introduced the “master plan” of getting SB 810 introduced and following up quickly with an initiative for the funding. The actual timing of these is still unclear. We all recognized that a major effort will be needed to counter the negative initiative that will undoubtedly be filed if the bill passes the governor’s desk.
I outlined the three major thrusts of PNHP: education, advocacy, and legislator contact. Jessica threw cold water on our desire to talk to legislators, indicating that nearly all of those in the region had made up their minds already. There were possibilities if we could identify remote locations with open-minded Repubicans. I also indicated that we had no volunteers for these various functions.
David Priver then discussed his contact with Steve Heilig, who is an administrator of the San Francisco Medical Society, who wrote that he:
…would be happy to talk re Healthy San Francisco; have had many such queries re the ‘portability’ of it to other areas. Physicians seem largely supportive, altho it is safe to say it is a minority who actually participate by seeing HSF patients. Some subgroups, such as emergency MDs, have had more concerns regarding reimbursement. Some of that is a problem specific to hospital systems rather than HSF, but some issues are still being worked out. My general message has been along the lines of ‘ You might be able to do a similar program IF your area has at least the following:
1. the clinical capacity to handle a significant surge of previously uninsured patients – over 50,000 in SF – and clinicians/clinics/a public hospital who will see them at reduced rates. (San Francisco has all of the above).
2. a broader business community who will see the wisdom of covering the uninsured, both in humane and economic terms, and will be willing to participate in terms of either providing coverage or kicking in something to cover employees who are not covered. (San Francisco has that, mostly, but was sued by one restaurant group – possibly with quiet support from larger groups – and fought all the way to the Supreme Court ; HSF won, possibly providing precedent for other areas and a disincentive for similar opposing lawsuits).
3. the political will among a significant group of leaders, elected and otherwise, to make this happen. (San Francisco has been called ‘socialist’, and “49 square miles surrounded by reality”, etc).
San Francisco Director of Health Mitch Katz, MD (who was recently recruited to LA), feels that “It is very rewarding that while the country continues to debate about who to include in health care coverage, and who should provide the coverage (public or private), that San Francisco has already enrolled over 49,000 uninsured persons to a program that provides comprehensive coverage. Unlike the divisiveness that characterizes the federal debate, San Francisco succeeds because of the willingness and desire of the providers (public and private) to work together to solve the problem.”
The upshot of the ensuing discussion was that San Diego was not similarly united in a positive mission, and that it would be premature to invite Dr. Katz to meet with the SD Co Medical Society (as we had thought originally) to present his experience.
We also discussed the question of whether HSF contradicts the goal of single payer, but concluded that it could be an interim step, getting people used to having coverage. The issue of advocating with legislators was again broached. Manny mentioned the “White Coat Day” in Virginia, the day before the new legislative session begins, when physicians traditionally come to Richmond and lobby. We really need to know how financing of SB 810 will be organized, which would require the initiative to be passed first, before we can ask legislators to support the bill.
The Statewide Strategy Group, with reps from multiple organizations, is still getting organized. Their next scheduled meeting is March 4th. There is no San Diego unified group working on stategy, which is definitely needed. Coalition building is clearly necessary, but physicians must play a key role. Kathy mentioned that CTA has a problem supporting the 2012 ballot for the initiative since they expect to have public funding (i.e., a tax) for school support on the same ballot. Jessica told us that the SD Co Board of Supervisors was no place to expect support. She mentioned that Santee has a new Republican legislator who is conservative, but may be persuaded.
We talked about ACO’s, and how Kaiser is the model of an ACO. We alo talked about students and how SB 810 helps them. We mentioned some supporters, such as the city of El Cajon. Claire reported that the tea party is “going to support Vermont’s single payer plan.” The SD School Board supported SB 840 in its day, and might be interested in SB 810. The SD Labor Council, though stressed by divisions, is worth considering. We should tackle both SEIU and AFSCME.
A public debate with Bob Hertzka (a leader in the SD physician community, a former UCSD student and former head of the Medical Society) would be good. There are OASIS classes at UCSD which might be a good forum for discussing single payer. We were charged to follow Lakoff’s advice and reframe this issue rather than try to refute the negative arguments. We agreed that the values of the medical profession must be our prime motivation.
The time of the next meeting is uncertain, since we do not have a firm date for important decisions from the state office. It will either be next month, if we can continue to recruit people, or the following month. Saturday or Sunday? Please let me know your preferences! If we can get people to communicate over the internet we con’t need to have as many face-to-face meetings, and I will work with our politically savvy members to advise you of the coalitions that need physician representatives.
Respectfully Submitted,
Paul J Friedman.
Jessica said she would make available the schedule of Democratic Party Central Committee meetings, and her message (an excellent introduction!) follows:
“I have pasted in the meetings for each geographic area of the county for the San Diego County Democratic Party. The meetings are open to only registered Democrats within the County of San Diego. So, please share this information accordingly. The information is on the county party website, http://sddemocrats.org/
At these meetings, I recommend talking about what you want to see the party take action on. Is it to inform voters about a bill? Is it to include the question about whether or not a candidate supports single payer on the candidates questionnaire form? You have to tell the party what you, as a Democrat, want to see the party do and how you’d like them to accomplish it, if you can think of any way to do so. For example, the windmill I have taken on to tilt at are the slate mailers everyone receives. Ever since the party stopped sending out the official ballot these slate mailers have become the decisive factor in many, if not all, local races and local and statewide propositions. They are misleading and controlled by a small but extremely powerful and staggeringly well-funded group that is one of the foremost lobbying forces for an amalgamation of many large corporations including insurance, oil, banking, and real estate. They are same group you will be fighting against whether in the legislature or for a proposition. So for your representatives at these meetings listed below include the suggestion that the party mail out an official slate as a means to combat those slate mailers voters get will actually help secure votes for a statewide healthcare proposition. I cannot foresee anything other than the Democratic party endorsing a healthcare proposition. And if Democrats vote, then the prop will win if Democratic voters have the correct slate information.
What the party does not do is to write legislators or sign petitions. More or less what the County party does is to take a position on candidates and issues that are on ballots that are not statewide issues or statewide candidates, and the party makes voter contact about these specific candidates and specific propositions that are on an upcoming ballot. And the party gets out the vote. So your suggestions will be more likely to move forward if they fall into one of these broad categories instead of asking the party for, say, a public relations campaign in support of the proposition. But you can suggest for voter education on healthcare issues.
The county party cannot endorse a statewide candidate or take a position on a statewide proposition. That is done at the state party level. And as I mentioned, the state party adopted a resolution that says the party is for single payer. The party platform is made at the state level. The county party is an arm of the state party. We do local county-wide candidates and local propositions. We can do state assembly and state senator races within our county boundaries because they are not state-wide elections.
https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/sdcdpweb
This link is for a survey for the county party. Anyone who is a registered Democrat in the county should take this survey. Because it is for the county party, you may want to consider downplaying the Presidential and National stuff on the survey. Those are kind of trick questions. We want the county party to focus on what we want them to focus on and not on national politics. I am not worried Obama won’t take California. He will. I am very worried about local races and both local and statewide propositions and the effect of slate mailers skewing those votes. On the survey be sure to write in the healthcare issues in the places it provides to write. This way the Party will get the information at these meetings and also through the survey as a reinforcement. Please pass the survey on to any registered Democrat in the county. The more Democrats who take this survey the better. I am asking everyone to ask the party to send out an official slate in at least one of the write-in spots when they take this survey. It would be great if you could do the same.
Event: Central Area Town Hall Forum
Date(s): Saturday, February 26, 2011
Time: 12:00 PM – 2:00 PM
The San Diego County Democratic Party is hosting community forums in each region of the county to engage local Democrats in developing our long-term strategic plan. The meetings are open to anyone interested in making our County Party more effective in the 2012 election cycle and beyond! You’re invited to come to brainstorm, share your experiences, and offer your vision for a “blue” San Diego.:
Location: City Heights Library (Community Room) 3795 Fairmount Avenue, San Diego, 92105
Contact: (858) 277-3367
Email: rsvp@sddemocrats.org
Event: South County Town Hall Forum
Date(s): Tuesday, March 8, 2011
Time: 6:00 PM – 8:00 PM
Description: The San Diego County Democratic Party is hosting a community forum to engage
South County Democrats in developing our long-term strategic plan. The meetings are
open to anyone interested in making our County Party more effective in the 2012
election cycle and beyond! You’re invited to come to brainstorm, share your experiences,
and offer your vision for a “blue county.” You can RSVP by calling the office at the
number below or on my.barackobama.com or on our Facebook page (facebook.com/sdcdp
Location: Mangia Itialiano (248 Third Avenue, Chula Vista)
Contact: (858) 277-3367
Email: info@sddemocrats.org
Event: North County Town Hall Forum
Date(s): Saturday, March 12, 2011
Time: 2:15 PM – 4:15 PM
Description: The San Diego County Democratic Party is hosting a community forum to engage
North County Democrats in developing our long-term strategic plan.
The meetings are open to anyone interested in making our County Party more effective in the 2012 election cycle
and beyond! You’re invited to come to brainstorm, share your experiences, and offer
your vision for a “blue county.
Location: Lake San Marcos Club Room, 1005 La Bonita Drive, Lake San Marcos 92078
Contact: (858) 277-3367
Email: rsvp@sddemocrats.org
Website: www.my.barackobama.com/page/event/detail/gpzrlc/?override_wrapper_id=Cw3hs
Event: Council of Democratic Clubs Meeting
Date(s): Saturday, March 19, 2011
Time: 10:00 AM – 12:00 PM
Location: SDCDP Headquarters, 8340 Clairemont Mesa Blvd, Ste 105, San Diego CA 92111
Contact: Eleanor Mang at (858) 277-3367
Email: clubs@sddemocrats.org
Website: www.sddemocrats.org
Event: SDCDP East Area Meeting
Date(s): Saturday, April 9, 2011
Time: 9:30 AM – 10:30 AM
Description: Join us early at 9:00 am for breakfast & coffee or tea and time to chat before the meeting.
(Check out the breakfst menu online at 222.giowineanddine.com)
Location: Gio’s Bistro in La Mesa, 8384 La Mesa Blvd, 91941
Contact: (858) 277-3367
Email: chrispearson11@hotmail.com
Website: www.sddemocrats.org