More on Measure A
There is so much misunderstanding regarding Measure A, that I feel like I need to clarify the situation. Measure A is a response to the “Big, Beautiful Bill”, which is big but not beautiful.
This will cut $1 billion from the county of Santa Clara alone in Medicaid funding. We are not taxing to pay more to support our hospitals, but mitigate the damage by maybe 30%. Approximately 25% of the county’s residents are on Medi-Cal/Medicaid. That is 500,000 people. Obamacare is funded by Medicaid and it covers the indigent, children, young people and those who have jobs without insurance. Many organizations and hospitals do not take Medi-Cal as it does not pay enough to cover overhead. Furthermore, over 80,000 Medicare recipients in Santa Clara County use the county healthcare system. We are talking about almost 1/3 of the population of 2 million in the 4th richest county in the U.S. depend on this healthcare system. Furthermore, the county burn unit, and trauma center is based at Valley Medical Center. These patients have long and medically complex recoveries, not available at other institutions. This tax is a sales tax, regressive in this rich county, but in order to pass an income tax, one would have to involve the state and that might take years. The hospitals may have closed by then. I am voting for Measure A, it is the right thing to do.
Jane Lombard
Physician, community member
