“I want to go out tabling, but I’m afraid someone will ask me a question I can’t answer.”
Here is a compilation of the most frequently asked questions we get when out tabling.
Q: How are we going to pay for it?
A: Instead of paying premiums to private insurance companies, we would pay a tax to the California health care fund, which would be less than what we are currently paying for private insurance. This would cover everybody in California. The cost savings from eliminating insurance bureaucracies would mean more money in the wallets of individuals and businesses.
Q: But what about the State budget crisis? Can we afford this?
A: Adopting SB 810 in California will alleviate the budget crisis as counties, individuals and the state would be spending less than they are currently spending on health care. This is because having single payer is more efficient than having 6,000 private health insurance plans in California.
Q: Will it cover undocumented immigrants?
A: The bill would cover a person if he or she can provide proof of residency and prove that he or she intends to remain in the state of California.
Q: Didn’t they just pass national health care reform?
A: While there are positive significant reforms in the national legislation, we still have a long way to go. SB 810 covers everybody while the National plan leaves tens of millions without health care. SB 810 is comprehensive, it includes full dental, vision care, and prescription drug coverage while the national does not. SB 810 has no co-pays or deductibles while the national plan does. SB 810 saves California tens of billions of dollars a year while the national plan subsidizes the purchase of inadequate private health plans.
Q: Isn’t this socialized medicine???
A: Paying providers is socialized, yes. However, the delivery of health care being both public and private, remains as it is today.
Q: The government screws everything up, how can we trust them to run our health care system?
A: The Private insurance industry has had a hundred years to display their competence in administering health care, and they have failed. While Medicare, a government sponsored program, has served our seniors very well for the past 45 years.