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HOME > ABOUT > PRESS > LOCAL HEALTH CARE IN PERIL
Article published - June 16, 2009
Credit: SAN FRANCISCO CHRONICLE
Local health care in peril
by Pedro Toledo
With the current economic downturn, many community members in Sonoma County have lost not only their jobs and homes but also their health insurance.
Accordingly, Sonoma County's seven community health centers have stepped in as the safety-net providers of primary care and preventive services. The proposed state budget cuts to traditional clinic programs threatens our health centers' ability to meet the primary care and preventive needs of the most vulnerable members of our community.
Cutting clinic programs jeopardizes the ability of health clinics to serve tens of thousands of people and also threatens their ability to meet federal stimulus requirements. Since community health centers cannot use the stimulus funds to replace traditional clinic program funding, state legislators must preserve these cost-saving programs.
If we do not adequately fund community clinic programs, uninsured patients will crowd hospital emergency rooms, which will cost taxpayers much more money. I urge Assemblywoman Noreen Evans, D-Santa Rosa, and other members of the budget conference committee to preserve programs not only because they save taxpayers money, but also because community health centers are the first line of defense in times of public health crises.
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