State Sen. Sheila Kuehl (D-Santa Monica), a former UCLA law professor, will speak at the School of Public Health tonight, sharing her experiences in the state legislature and with fighting her battle for universal health care.
The event, hosted by student public health groups, will provide a forum for students and faculty to listen to a perspective on health care from one of the state’s most respected politicians, organizers said.
Kuehl has been active in health care reform. Her legislative successes include establishing nurse-to-patient staffing ratios, increasing newborn genetic testing, and being a strong advocate for universal health care, according to organizers.
Eric Morley, a graduate student in public health who organized the event, said he was honored that someone of Kuehl’s stature would come speak, and he was excited about welcoming the former UCLA law professor back to Westwood.
“She’s a very important politician at the forefront of health care reform. It’s a great opportunity to hear firsthand from someone who’s in the trenches of health care reform,” Morley said.
Kuehl is well-known for authoring SB 840, the California Universal Health Care Act.
As a “single payment system” reform proposal, the bill puts forward the idea of collecting tax money into one general fund and allocating the funds toward payment of health services.
With California facing a major budget crisis and widespread cuts affecting programs such as college education, the senator’s unique universal health care bill has faced its detractors, who have deemed it frivolous.
Gov. Schwarzenegger vetoed Kuehl’s bill in 2006, and although the bill was reintroduced earlier this year, it has stalled. Instead, Schwarzenegger sponsored a Fabian Núñez (D-Los Angeles) bill soliciting help from insurance companies.
Under the provisions of the Núñez bill, Californians would be required to purchase insurance, which employers would be mandated to provide.
“That’s the whole dilemma ““ the budget thing,” Morley said. “People have their arguments on either side.”
Chris Elsert, a graduate student in public health, said he was attending the event, to ask the senator about the Núñez bill, which was rejected by the Senate’s Health Committee, chaired by Kuehl.
“She has a unique position on health care that is very different from what others in the state and country have,” Elsert said. “She’s one of the only people that advocates the single-payer health care system. I want her take on why the bill died and her stance on it.”
Mike Ries, an intern at Kuehl’s office, said though the budget crisis has dampened the progressive mood of universal health care, he praised the senator’s resolve to keep SB 840 alive.
“They wanted to address the budget problems first. But she sees that so many people are being denied health care because they can’t afford it, and she is definitely a woman of the people,” Ries said.