California Single Payer 2 Votes Short in Senate
Come on California! If you live in the state, best be hitting the phones of your legislators.
The idea of a single-payer health care system in California stalled on the Senate floor yesterday, falling two votes short of passage.
Reconsideration of the bill was granted, though, so proponents of SB 810 by Mark Leno (D-San Francisco) have until Tuesday to reintroduce the bill. First they will have to come up with two big votes. The bill failed on a 19-15 vote.
[…]All Republicans present voted against the bill. The abstention of four moderate Democrats and one Democrat’s “No” vote turned the political tide on single payer, proponents said.
The idea of universal coverage has been passed by the Legislature before. In 2007 and 2009, both houses approved the idea, only to have it vetoed by Gov. Schwarzenegger. Last year, it passed the Senate and stalled when it was not brought to the floor in the Assembly.
[…]If the bill is reintroduced by Tuesday and it gets 21 votes on the Senate floor, it would move to the Assembly.
