Posts Tagged ‘Senator’
Friday, March 12th, 2010
Senator Leland Yee is today proposing a law that would require health insurance policies to include coverage for tobacco cessation services. He made the announcement today at San Francisco General Hospital along with all these people:
Supervisor Eric Mar
Dr. Mitch Katz, San Francisco Department of Public Health
Serena Chen, American Lung Association
John Hanley, San Francisco Firefighters
Dr. Dexter Louie, California Medical Association
Gail Maderis, BayBio
Dr. Steve Fugaro, San Francisco Medical Society
Karen Licavoli-Farnkopf, Breathe California
District 2 Supervisor Eric Mar talked about his parents, who both “smoked like crazy.”
Click to expand
All the deets:
Bill Introduced to Require Insurance Companies Cover Tobacco Cessation. Senator Yee and Supervisor Mar team-up to sponsor legislation to fight cancer
SAN FRANCISCO – According the US Surgeon General, tobacco use is the single greatest cause of disease and premature death in America today and is responsible for more than 435,000 deaths annually, including nearly 40,000 in California alone.
In an effort to fight this epidemic, Senator Leland Yee (D-San Francisco) today teamed-up with San Francisco Supervisor Eric Mar, the American Lung Association, doctors, and firefighters to introduce legislation that would mandate health insurance policies include coverage for tobacco cessation services such as patches, nasal sprays, inhalers, gum, prescription medications, and counseling.
“The societal costs of tobacco-related death and disease approach $96 billion annually in medical expenses and $97 billion in lost productivity nationwide,” said Yee. “More then 70 percent of all current smokers, however, have expressed a desire to stop smoking. By ensuring that health plans cover the cost of quitting, more Californians will be able to kick this bad habit, medical costs will be reduced, and most importantly, lives will be saved.”
In 2006, as part of its universal healthcare program, Massachusetts began covering most expenses for smoking cessation counseling and prescription drugs for Medicaid recipients. The result has been an astonishing drop in the population of poor people who smoke — from 38% to 28%. There is also evidence of a parallel reduction in hospitalization for heart attacks and treatments for asthma.
“Smoking disproportionately impacts those in economically disadvantaged communities,” said Mar, who is sponsoring a resolution in support of Yee’s bill. “Requiring health care providers to include coverage for smokers who would like to quit smoking creates a healthier California and protects the public’s health.”
About 20 percent of adult Americans currently smoke, and 4,000 children and adolescents smoke their first cigarette each day. According to the California Department of Public Health, the adult smoking rate in California is 14 percent and there are approximately 3.8 million current adult smokers in California.
“It’s time to make it easier for the nearly four million Californians who smoke, to quit,” said Jane Warner, President and CEO of the American Lung Association in California. “Because, right now, we’re failing these people as highlighted by the ‘D’ grade earned in Cessation Coverage by the state in the American Lung Association’s recent State of Tobacco Control Report.”
“SB 220 takes another important step in the long journey of providing Californians the support and incentives they need to quit using tobacco products,” said Brennan Cassidy, M.D., president of the California Medical Association, which represents 35,000 physicians across the state. “Requiring health plans to cover smoking cessation treatment is a no-brainer. We know that when a person quits smoking it saves the health care system immensely by significantly reducing the chances of heart disease, lung cancer and other life-threatening diseases that require intensive, expensive treatment.”
“Smoking cessation is more cost-effective than other common and insurance-covered disease prevention interventions, such as high blood pressure and high cholesterol treatment and routine cancer screenings,” said Yee. “Consumers need and deserve this treatment option.”
With SB 220, California would become the 8th state to mandate coverage for tobacco cessation services. In addition to the American Lung Association, Yee’s bill is supported by the California Medical Association, California Psychological Association, San Francisco Firefighters Local 798, San Francisco Medical Society, National Council of Asian & Pacific Islander Physicians, and the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, AFL-CIO.
Tags: American Lung Association, BayBio, Breathe California, california, California Medical Association, cessation, Cigarettes, counseling, Department of Public Health., Dexter Louie, district 2, dr., eric mar, firefighters, Gail Maderis, general hospital, gum, health, inhalers, insurance, John Hanley, Karen Licavoli-Farnkopf, leland yee, medical, mitch katz, nasal sprays, patches, phd, prescription medications, required, sacramento, San Francisco, San Francisco Medical Society, sb 220, sb220, Senator, Serena Chen, smoke, smoking, state, Steve Fugaro, Supervisor, treatment
Posted in health | 1 Comment »
Friday, March 5th, 2010
This was the scene the other day at the LGBT Center at a Harvey Milk Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender Democratic Club meeting in support of Community Choice Aggregation.
Here’s a report from KPIX Channel 5 (if you can handle a commercial beforehand.)
Supervisor Ross Mirkarimi, Supervisor David Campos, Carole Migden, Paul Fenn, John Rizzo, Chris Jackson, and Eric Brooks, among others, were all there:
The fight over Proposition 16 is hotting up, certainly.
Tags: 16, 1800, 1800 Market, 6, 9, bay guardian, bise, blgt, blgtq, blvd., boulevard, Carole Migden, cca, center, Chair, chris jackson, clean energy, CLEAN ENERGY FORUM, club, Community Choice, county, CPUC, david campos, Democrat, democratic, district, district 9, disttrict, editor in chief, electric, electricity, Environmental Caucus, Environmental Caucus Chair, Eric Brooks, former, forum, Gay, Harvey Milk, hydro, hydro-electric, John Rizzo, Lesbian, LGBT, lgbtq, Linette, Linette Peralta Haynes, marin, market, octavia, pac, pacific gas & electric, pacific gas and electric, Paul Fenn, Peralta Haynes, pg&e, pigs giraffes and elephants, power grab, Progressive, prop, Proposition, PUC, queer, San Francisco, Senator, sfbg, SFPUC, sierra club, solar, state, stop, street, Supervisor, supervisors, tim redmond, Tom Taylor, town hall, Transgender, ual, utility
Posted in politics | No Comments »
Tuesday, March 2nd, 2010
San Francisco’s Harvey Milk Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender Democratic Club is hosting a Community Choice Aggregation (CCA) Town Hall tonight at the LGBT Center on the corner of Market and Octavia. CCA is:
“a system adopted into law in the states of Massachusetts, Ohio, California, New Jersey and Rhode Island which allows cities and counties to aggregate the buying power of individual customerswithin a defined jurisdiction in order to secure alternative energy supply contracts. Currently, nearly 1 million Americans receive service from CCAs.”
The special guests will be Assembly Bill 117 (2002) author Carole Migden, District 5 Supervisor Ross Mirkarimi, District 9 Supervisor David Campos and San Francisco Bay Guardian Executive Editor Tim Redmond.
The whole shebang starts at 6:45 PM:
STOP the PG$E Power GRAB!
PG&E is spending MILLIONS of YOUR dollars in this June’s election to prevent Local Control and Community Choice regarding electricity rates & renewable energy!
Confused about Community Choice Aggregation & SF Clean Energy Program?
That’s okay! Former State Senator Carole Migden, author of the Community Choice Aggregation legislation, and many others will be at this special Milk Club PAC Forum to help explain these issues and show you how to educate our communities and take DIRECT POLITICAL ACTION!
This event is OPEN to the PUBLIC!
Please invite EVERYONE YOU KNOW to attend this SPECIAL FORUM and STOP PG&E!
Tuesday, March 2, 2010 @ 6:45 p.m.
LGBT Community Center
1800 Market Street @ Octavia
4th Floor Ceremonial Room
Special Guests Include:
Former State Senator Carole Migden, San Francisco
Supervisors David Campos & Ross Mirkarimi, San Francisco
Featured Presenters:
Paul Fenn, John Rizzo, Chris Jackson and Eric Brooks
Moderators:
MILK Club Political VP Linette Peralta Haynes
SF BAY GUARDIAN Editor-in-Chief Tim Redmond
Convener:
Tom Taylor, Milk Club Environmental Caucus Chair
HISTORY + ACTION = PROGRESS
Harvey Milk Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender Democratic Club
Celebrating 35 Years of Progressive Political Action and Fighting for our Communities
Tags: 1800, 1800 Market, 6, 9, bay guardian, bise, blgt, blgtq, blvd., boulevard, Carole Migden, cca, center, Chair, chris jackson, clean energy, CLEAN ENERGY FORUM, club, Community Choice, county, CPUC, david campos, Democrat, democratic, district, district 9, disttrict, editor in chief, electric, electricity, Environmental Caucus, Environmental Caucus Chair, Eric Brooks, former, forum, Gay, Harvey Milk, hydro, hydro-electric, John Rizzo, Lesbian, LGBT, lgbtq, Linette, Linette Peralta Haynes, marin, market, octavia, pac, pacific gas & electric, pacific gas and electric, Paul Fenn, Peralta Haynes, pg&e, pigs giraffes and elephants, power grab, Progressive, PUC, queer, San Francisco, Senator, sfbg, SFPUC, sierra club, solar, state, stop, street, Supervisor, supervisors, tim redmond, Tom Taylor, town hall, Transgender, ual, utility
Posted in politics | No Comments »
Tuesday, February 16th, 2010
Our Senator Leland Yee, Ph.D. is today calling for support for his Clean Needle Bill, SB 1029. It would permit all California pharmacists to sell up to 30 sterile syringes to drug users aged 18 and over. Why? To prevent the spread of HIV, hepatitis B, hepatitis C and other blood-borne diseases that live in used syringes.
All the deets of today’s presser with Mark Cloutier, CEO of the San Francisco AIDS Foundation and Barry Zevin, MD, a San Francisco primary care and HIV clinician, below.
Senator Yee, PhD:
Yee Introduces Clean Needle Bill. Legislation would allow pharmacies to sell sterile syringes to prevent spread of HIV & Hepatitis C
Today, State Senator Leland Yee (D-San Francisco/San Mateo) was joined by doctors, pharmacists, and AIDS prevention advocates to introduce legislation that would allow pharmacies throughout California the discretion to sell up to 30 sterile syringes to an adult without a prescription.
California is one of only three states that still prohibit pharmacists from selling a syringe without a prescription. Most states amended their laws in light of evidence that criminalized access to sterile syringes led drug users to share used ones, and that sharing syringes spread HIV, hepatitis B, hepatitis C and other blood-borne diseases that can live in a used syringe.
“This is an effective public health measure which is proven to reduce health care costs to taxpayers,” said Yee. “It’s a moral, as well as fiscal imperative.”
“Access to sterile syringes is a vital component of a comprehensive strategy to combat HIV and hepatitis,” said Yee. “This approach has been evaluated extensively throughout the world and has been found to significantly reduce rates of HIV and hepatitis without contributing to any increase in drug use, drug injection, crime or unsafe discard of syringes.”
Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger (R-Los Angeles) signed legislation in 2004 to create a five-year pilot to evaluate the safety and efficacy of allowing adults to purchase and possess a limited number of syringes for personal use. Under the pilot program pharmacies in Los Angeles County, the Bay Area and some other parts of the state have been allowed to sell syringes.
Yee’s SB 1029 would remove the sunset and allow all pharmacists throughout the state with the discretion to sell sterile syringes without a prescription.
Sharing of used syringes is the most common cause of new hepatitis C infections in California and the second most common cause of HIV infections. The state Department of Public Health estimates that approximately 3,000 California residents contract hepatitis C through syringe sharing every year and another 750 cases of HIV are caused by syringe sharing.
These diseases are costly and potentially deadly. Hospitalizations for hepatitis B and hepatitis C cost the state $2 billion in 2007, according to a report by the California Research Bureau. The lifetime cost of treating hepatitis C is approximately $100,000, unless a liver transplant is required, and then the cost exceeds $300,000 per surgery. The lifetime cost of treating HIV/AIDS is now estimated to exceed $600,000 per patient.
By comparison, a syringe costs about ten to fifteen cents retail. The bill requires no appropriation of state funds, because it allows adults to buy syringes at their own expense.
Among health policy researchers speaking in favor of SB 1029, Alex Kral, an epidemiologist who has supervised several studies of HIV prevention said, “In light of over 200 studies worldwide that establish improved syringe access means less disease with no downside, to continue a policy of making syringe sales illegal would amount to health policy malpractice.”
The 200 studies Kral referred to were reviewed by the World Health Organization (WHO) in 2008. WHO concluded that the overwhelming scientific consensus showed improved syringe access reduced rates of HIV and hepatitis without contributing to drug use, crime or unsafe discard of syringes.
“There is not one credible study from anywhere in the world that refutes these findings,” Kral said.
Among the numerous studies cited was one published in the American Journal of Public Health from 2001 that compared US cities that allowed pharmacists to sell syringes to adults without a prescription and those that did not. The study found that the rate of HIV among drug injectors was twice as high in cities that forbid sale without a prescription than those cities that allowed pharmacists greater flexibility to provide syringes.
“This approach has been overwhelmingly supported by the health professions,” said Yee. “I look forward to working with my colleagues in the Legislature, the Governor and the California Department of Public Health to craft the most efficient and cost-effective means of saving lives and public dollars by preventing HIV and hepatitis C.”
SB 1029 will be considered in committee in March.
Tags: 1029, a.i.d.s., AIDS, AIDS Foundation, B., Barry Zevin, bill, c, california, CEO, clean, counties, county, Department of Public Health., disease, dr. md. doctor, hep, hepatitus, hiv, illegal, leland yee, Mark Cloutier, MD, needles, pharmacist, pharmacy, phd, sacramento, San Francisco, San Francisco AIDS Foundation, San Mateo, sb, SB 1029, Senator, users, virus
Posted in government | No Comments »
Friday, January 29th, 2010
Our Senator Leland Yee, Ph.D. doesn’t want you to be required to register a way ahead of election day. So, he’ll soon have a bill that would let you be able to go to the polls, register tout de suite and then vote. Easy peasy, right?
Dr. Yee plans to officially introduce the bill in the next two weeks, with the first hearing likely in March.
Senator Yee speaking this morning at San Francisco’s State Building, with San Mateo County Elections Manager David Tom, San Mateo County Supervisor Rich Gordon, and San Mateo County Chief Elections Officer / Assessor-County Clerk-Recorder Warren Slocum:
All the deets, after the jump.
Tags: Assessor, cal vote, california, calvote, chief, county, County Clerk, David Tom, Elections Manager, Elections Officer, leland yee, ph.d, Recorder, resigstration, Rich Gordon, sacramento, same day., San Francisco, San Mateo, Senator, Supervisor, vote, vote cal, votecal, voters, Warren Slocum, weeks
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Tuesday, January 26th, 2010
That big residential solar project in the Lower Haight / Western Addition / Hayes Valley from SunWheel Energy Partners just went live. The juice, she is flowing.
See all the deets in this 15 minute video - it’s just like being there.
San Francisco Assessor-Recorder Phil “The Thrill” Ting was there for the ribbon-cutting…
…as was District 5 Supervisor Ross “The Boss” Mirkarimi:
San Francisco Affordable Housing Sites Power On Solar Energy
Federal, State and Local Officials, Site Residents and Community Members Celebrate Green Energy and New Jobs at Western Addition Ribbon Cutting Ceremony
San Francisco, CA, January 26, 2010 – On Monday, January 25, 2010, Sunwheel Energy Partners, which provides turnkey solar energy systems for urban and community partners, celebrated the commissioning of solar photovoltaic (PV) systems at three affordable housing community sites in San Francisco’s Western Addition and Hayes Valley neighborhoods — bringing solar power, green jobs and financial relief to residents and owners. The ribbon cutting ceremony at Plaza East Apartments was widely attended by a notable group of federal, state and local officials as well as the site’s residents and community members who were hired to install the solar panels.
Dignitaries in attendance included Henry Alvarez, Executive Director, San Francisco Housing Authority; Timothy Alan Simon, CPUC Commissioner; Phil Ting, SF Assessor-Recorder; David Rubin, Director of Service Analysis, PG&E; Michael Carlin, SFPUC Deputy General Manager; Neola Gans, Vice President, SF Housing Authority Commission; Caroline Krewson, Deputy Regional Director, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development; Stephen Schneller, Director, San Francisco Office of Public Housing; Ross Mirkarimi, San Francisco Supervisor; and representatives of Speaker Nancy Pelosi and U.S. Senator Barbara Boxer’s offices. Senator Mark Leno issued a proclamation commending the site.
Even more deets, after the jump
(more…)
Tags: Assessor, Assessor-Recorder, barbara boxer, Caroline Krewson, commission, commissioner, CPUC, David Rubin, Deputy Regional Director, director, Director of Service Analysis, district 5, electric, electricity, Energy Partners, Executive Director, gavin newsom, general manager, hayes valley, Henry Alvarez, hope VI, house, housing, Housing Authority, HUD, low income, mark leno, Mayor, nancy pelosi, Neola Gans, north, offices, panels, PG&E; Michael Carlin, Phil Ting, photovoltaic, Projects, public, pv, Recorder, representatives Congresswomen, residential, rooftop, ross mirkarimi, San Francisco, San Francisco Office of Public Housing, Senator, SFPD, SFPUC Deputy, solar, south, speaker, Stephen Schneller, sun, SunWheel, SunWheel Energy Partners, Supervisor, Timothy Alan Simon, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, U.S. Senator, vice president, Wheel
Posted in environment, government | No Comments »
Friday, January 15th, 2010
Your Senator, Leland Yee, just pledged $1000 to help the survivors of the big earthquake in Haiti.
Read below to see how you can join the cause. (You don’t want to donate to a nonworthy organization, of course)
Senator Yee, PhD:
Here’s the release from his conference this afternoon at La Casa de las Madres on Valencia Street:
Local Community Launches Relief Efforts for Haiti
Senator Yee donates to effort, urges local residents to help people of Haiti
In response to the earthquake in Haiti, Senator Leland Yee (D-San Francisco) joined several local organizations and members of the local Haitian community today to highlight relief efforts in the San Francisco Bay area. In addition to urging local residents to help provide assistance, Yee also donated $1,000 to the relief effort.
“The enormity of this disaster is indescribable,” said Yee. “The people of Haiti, who were already extremely underprivileged, need the world’s help. I urge everyone in the Bay Area to give what they can, even if that is $5 to help save lives.”
The 7.0 earthquake that devastated Haiti earlier this week has left hundreds of thousands of people dead, missing, or hurt. The nation’s already weak infrastructure has been crippled.
“We have unfortunately seen many disasters around the world, but this may be the most catastrophic we have ever seen,” said Yee. “Considering the poor condition of Haiti prior to the earthquake, coupled with the complete collapse of what they had, this is truly a dire situation. As a child psychologist, my heart cries out for the children of Haiti, who have lost mothers, fathers, sisters, and brothers, and in some cases their entire family.”
Even prior to the earthquake, Haiti was one of the world’s poorest and least developed nations, and the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere. It had a gross domestic product (GDP) of only $7 billion in 2009 (San Francisco alone as a GDP of nearly $300 billion). Per capita GDP was $790 (San Francisco has a per capita GDP of $62,300).
Haiti’s 9.7 million people have the lowest literacy rate in the region (65.9%). Only half of Haiti’s children are unvaccinated. Prior to the earthquake, nearly half the causes of death were attributed to HIV/AIDS, respiratory infections, meningitis and other diseases (World Health Organization). Approximately 30,000 people each year suffer from malaria, and tuberculosis is ten times higher than any other Latin American country.
Haiti was the first independent nation in Latin America, the first post-colonial independent black-led nation in the world, and the only nation whose independence was gained through a successful slave rebellion.
Today, Yee recognized several organizations for their relief efforts and urged local residents to make contributions to the following:
California Nurses Association
NNU Haiti Disaster Relief Fund
2000 Franklin, Street
Oakland, CA 94612
www.calnurses.org
American Red Cross Bay Area Chapter
85 Second Street, 8th Floor
San Francisco, CA 94105
www.redcrossbayarea.org
Direct Relief International
27 S. La Patera Lane
Santa Barbara, CA 93117
www.directrelief.org
Haiti Emergency Relief Fund
East Bay Sanctuary Covenant
2362 Bancroft Way
Berkeley, CA 94704
Partners In Health
P.O. Box 845578
Boston, MA 02284-5578
www.pih.org
Tags: American Red Cross Bay Area Chapter, california, California Nurses Association, county, Direct Relief International, donate, donation, hait, Haiti Emergency Relief Fund, leland yee, nonprofit, organization, Partners In Health, San Francisco, San Mateo, Senator
Posted in government | No Comments »
Friday, January 8th, 2010
Last year’s rape case at Richmond High School in the City of Richmond, CA is getting some attention from the solons of Sacramento.
Item 1: Senator Leland Yee doesn’t cotton to the idea of people just standing around when 16-year-olds get raped, so he authored Senate Bill 840. It requires:
“individuals who reasonably believe that they have witnessed a murder, rape or lewd or lascivious act with a child under the age of 18 years to notify law enforcement officials.”
Basically, SB840 would update the David Cash Jr. Law, aka the Sherrie Iverson Child Victim Protection Act that was authored by former Senator, current Assemblyman, and future Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Torlakson. Tom’s law already covers victims aged up to 14 years - Leland’s proposed law would add in victims aged 15 through 18.
The California Senate’s Assistant President pro Tempore at the helm in Sacramento:
Here’s a brief rundown on non-Samaritan poster-boy David Cash, from Wiki’s entry on murderer Jerry Strohmeyer:
“Sherrice Iverson’s mother demanded that David Cash, Jr., be charged as an accessory, but authorities stated there was not enough evidence connecting him to the actual crime, and Cash was never prosecuted for any offense related to the murder. In the weeks following Strohmeyer’s arrest, Cash told the Los Angeles Timesthat he did not dwell on the murder of Sherrice Iverson. “I’m not going to get upset over somebody else’s life. I just worry about myself first. I’m not going to lose sleep over somebody else’s problems.” He also told the newspaper that the publicity surrounding the case had made it easier for him to “score with women.” Cash also told the Long Beach Press-Telegram: “I’m no idiot … I’ll get my money out of this.”
So that’s Item 1.
Item 2: Assemblyman Pedro Nava has authored AB 984, which would cover victims of any age.
So, those are California’s proposed witness crime reporting bills of 2010, so far.
Here’s Senator Yee’s release from this morning, after the jump
(more…)
Tags: 2009, 2010, 9/11, 984, ab, assembly, assemblyman, assemblymember, bill, california, Child Victim Protection Act, county, david cash, high school, jerry strohmeyer, Jr, law, leland yee, nevada, pedro nava, police, rape, report, richmond, san francsico, San Mateo, sb, SB 840, SB840, Senator, Sherrie Iverson, tom, torlakson, Witness
Posted in Uncategorized | No Comments »
Tuesday, November 17th, 2009
San Francisco’s online world was all a Twitter last night due to writer Beth Spotwood’s First Annual Soberversary at Yelp-rated Rye in the Theatre District.
Hundreds of well-wishers tried to pack into the place – it was truly San Francisco’s Affair of the Decade of the Aughts.
Here are just a few…
…of Beth’s supporters.
This was as close as I could get to the program next door due to the standing-room-only crowd. Emcee Melissa Griffinintroduced the always-dapper, besuited Senator Mark Leno, who presented an official certificate to Beth:
And here’s Beth in action, doing spoken word in front of a brick wall.
Congratulations, Beth. Bon courage!
Tags: 2009, 688, affair, affair of the decade, anniversary, annual, bar, Beth Spotswood, decade, First, geary, mark leno, melissa griffin, recovery, rehab, rehabilitation, rye, San Francisco, Senator, sober, Soberversary, tenderloin, theatre district, Writer
Posted in Uncategorized, events | Comments Off
Thursday, October 22nd, 2009
Well it’s here. The Bay Area blog from the New York Times is finally here, along with a new Bay Area Edition for the newspaper. And, like some other famous New Yorkites (such as Harvey Milk, Bill Graham and Senator Carole Migden), the NYT has offended the locals of San Francisco upon arrival. Oh well.
Let’s welcome this new blog with open arms. Give us More I say. Hang those who talk of less.
Meet your New Writers here. They include:
Felicity Barringer
Jesse McKinley
Gerry Shih
Michelle Quinn
Malia Wollan
All right. Expect good things.
Bon courage, TBA!
Tags: bab, bay area, Bay Area blog, bill graham, Carole Migden, Felicity Barringer, Gerry Shih, Harvey Milk, Jesse McKinley, Malia Wollan, media, Michelle Quinn, new york times, newspaper, San Francisco, Senator, tba, tbab, The Bay Area
Posted in bay area, media | Comments Off
