California Healthline Rounds Up Health Care Positions for Five Gubernatorial Recall Candidates
California Healthline today highlights health issues discussed yesterday during a debate among five of the leading candidates in the gubernatorial recall election. The candidates' positions on health care issues are summarized below.
- Abortion: Bustamante said he would sign a bill that would make abortion a "woman's right" in the state, the Chronicle reports.
- Legal rights for same-sex couples: Bustamante said he would sign a bill that would provide legal rights for same-sex couples (Marinucci/Wildermuth, San Francisco Chronicle, 9/4). The Assembly yesterday voted 41-32 to approve a bill (AB 205) that would expand legal, financial, employment and health benefits to same-sex, registered domestic partners (California Healthline, 9/4).
- Proposition 54: Bustamante said he is opposed to the measure (San Francisco Chronicle, 9/4). Proposition 54, also known as the Racial Privacy Initiative, would prevent California government agencies and schools from collecting racial and ethnic data but would allow exemptions in instances involving some medical research data, convicted criminals or crime suspects and occasions in which the federal government requires racial data (California Healthline, 9/2).
- Proposition 187: Bustamante said he voted against Proposition 187 (San Francisco Chronicle, 9/4). Proposition 187, which was approved by California residents in 1994 but never implemented, would have restricted access to many public services for undocumented immigrants (California Healthline, 12/5/02).
- Abortion: Camejo said he would sign legislation that would make abortion a woman's right.
- Legal rights for same-sex couples: Camejo said he would sign a bill that would provide legal rights for same-sex couples.
- Proposition 54: Camejo said he is opposed to the measure.
- Proposition 187: Camejo said he voted against the measure.
- Abortion: Huffington said she would sign a bill that would make abortion a woman's right.
- Legal rights for same-sex couples: Huffington said she would sign a bill that would provide legal rights for same-sex couples.
- Proposition 54: Huffington said she is opposed to the measure.
- Proposition 187: Huffington has said she voted against the measure but "did not speak out against it," the Chronicle reports.
- Abortion: McClintock said he would veto a bill that would make abortion a woman's right.
- Legal rights for same-sex couples: McClintock said he would veto AB 205.
- Proposition 54: McClintock said he supports the measure.
- Proposition 187: McClintock said he voted for the measure and campaigned for it.
Peter Ueberroth (I)
- Abortion: Ueberroth said he would sign a bill that would make abortion a woman's right in the state.
- Legal rights for same-sex couples: Ueberroth said he would sign a bill that would provide legal rights for same-sex couples, but said he opposes gay marriage, the Chronicle reports.
- Proposition 54: Ueberroth said he has not yet taken a position on the measure.
- Proposition 187: Ueberroth declined to say whether he voted for or against the measure (San Francisco Chronicle, 9/4).
All five candidates said they would "fight to uphold" Proposition 215, the 1996 ballot initiative allowing state physicians to recommend marijuana to sick patients, the Washington Post reports (Nieves, Washington Post, 9/4). NPR's "Morning Edition" today reported on the recall candidates' support for Proposition 215 (Gonzales, "Morning Edition," NPR, 9/4). The full segment is available online in RealPlayer. Video of the debates is available online in RealPlayer through C-SPAN. In addition, audio of the debates is available online in RealPlayer through KQED.
This is part of the California Healthline Daily Edition, a summary of health policy coverage from major news organizations. Sign up for an email subscription.