Elizabeth Wu: All Related Content

Over two million Californians have medical debt. These residents find it difficult to access needed health care or affordable credit. Medical debt and its consequences illustrate the detrimental effect of inadequate health insurance coverage. The financial stress resulting from unaffordable healthcare costs makes it harder for Californians to pay other bills. For Californians with medical debt, their physical, mental and financial health are at risk, as is their long term financial security.

The Golden State not only faces unprecedented demographic and economic changes, but does so with a governance system that is fundamentally broken, and arguably incapable of implementing the policy reforms that are so clearly needed. Recognizing this, the New America Foundation joined the What's Next California coalition to convene a deliberative poll with a scientifically selected random sample of California's registered voters.

We're pleased to announce a new public radio experiment from two of our senior fellows, Anne Stuhldreher and Douglas McGray.
 

In less than a week, Californians from across the state will meet in Torrance for a deliberative poll on important issues facing the Golden State. When asked why the deliberative poll matters, Asian America Action Fund Executive Director Gautam Dutta explained that, "for the first time in a long time, we are actually asking everyday Californians for their commonsense advice on how to fix the state's problems."

Five and six year olds across San Francisco are graduating kindergarten this week with more than just a paper diploma—they also have their own personal college savings account.

This morning, I attended a graduation ceremony for 80 kindergarten students at Gordon J Lau Elementary in the Chinatown neighborhood of San Francisco. Not only is Gordon J Lau Elementary one of the largest schools in the city, but 90 percent of the students receive free or reduced lunches. Many are the first in their family to attend an American school and very few speak English at home.

Early this morning, a group of parents gathered in the library of Cesar E. Chavez Elementary School in San Francisco’s Mission neighborhood. In a few months, these parents will send their sons and daughters to Kindergarten, and will have an opportunity to participate in a new City program that aims to help families invest in their children.

Last week, a bipartisan coalition came together at the state capitol to launch Step Up California, a statewide campaign to reduce poverty in the state. After the press conference, over 70 legislative staffers participated in an interactive poverty simulation, that had them assume the role of a member of a struggling family.

Three cities in the East Bay – Oakland, Berkeley, and San Leandro – are moving toward implementing Instant Runoff Voting (IRV) this year. Last week, the Oakland City Council upheld a mandate from the City’s voters when it voted to move forward with IRV. Berkeley’s City Manager recently sent a letter to San Leandro saying that they’re ready to move forward, as long as San Leandro does as well.

With a budget deficit, high unemployment, and foreclosures, California will spend the New Year tackling the symptoms of a larger problem. While these areas need attention, my colleague Mark Paul pointed out in yesterday’s Bee that, "California's real trouble is that its current system of government, misshapen by decades of piecemeal changes, is no longer capable of dealing with its problems."