In Depth: Core, Props. 23 and 14
LOS ANGELES - SEGMENT 1
Ann Lee is the CEO of CORE, which was founded after the Earthquake in Haiti and provides relief and assistance after disasters. They are now working in cities across the U.S. helping out with crises from hurricanes to, most recently, the COVID-19 pandemic. The charitable group is now in Los Angeles assisting with free COVID testing, and contact tracing.
Lee says that the group helps with logistical issues and security to allow the health workers to ramp up to as many as 20,000 tests per day. She says across the US they have probably topped 1.8 million tests altogether.
However Lee says testing is not enough. She says other factors necessary to stop the spread are getting the message out about how to protect oneself, and contact tracing. She says the group is able to persuade people to talk to them even in areas where there is a great distrust of the government
SEGMENT 2
Steve Trossman joins Hal to argue in favor of Proposition 23 and Dewayne Cox argues the anti-Prop 23 side. The proposition would require a health professional to be present at a dialysis center in order for it to treat patients. Cox has been a dialysis patient for more than 20 years. He believes that the physician provision is unnecessary and could be dangerous for dialysis patients, because he says the clinics would have to close or cut back shifts because of the cost. He says there are already medical professionals available to him as a patient.
Trossman argues that dialysis is a dangerous procedure, and there are many complications that could occur, even some that could be life-threatening. He says the clinics tend to be understaffed, and they need to have someone with advanced medical training available.
He believes that it is untrue that the dialysis centers would close, and that there is a provision in the proposition that the clinics can’t close unless they can prove to the state that it is justified.
SEGMENT 3
Hal discusses Proposition 14 with advocate Bob Klein and opponent John Seiler. Klein is the board founding chairman of CIRM – the California Institute of Regenerative medicine. That is the body that would be receiving state bond funds to continue to offer grants to universities and labs experimenting with stem cells. Prop 14 would allow the state to sell 5 ½ billion dollars in bonds to support CIRM.
John Seiler says he opposes the measure because so far the investment in stem cells has not paid off; that the inventions developed so far have only provided about $350,000 to the state, despite saying that it would provide millions in profits to the state. Seiler says in the midst of a paramedic and a recession, it would not be a good time to get into more debt.
Klein says there have been tremendous benefits from stem cell research. He says the FDA has labelled 9 therapies that are currently in clinical trials as breakthrough therapies, and that there are cancer treatments that are saving lives created from this research. He says there are more than 90 clinical trials in the works and that this research will provide financial benefit as well as lifesaving benefits to Californians.
John says the money is needed for other things in the state, that cities and school districts are going bankrupt and that the state can’t afford this right now.
Klein says the measure doesn’t even require repayment for six years, and so won’t stress the state budget, and is of minimal cost to individual taxpayers.
SEGMENT 4
We close with the “Three Michaels” playing the theme from “Halloween” at an art gallery behind the Michael Myers house in South Pasadena.