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Critics Say Governor's Proposed Medi-Cal Cuts Will Hurt

Governor Schwarzenegger says solving California's budget crisis will require dramatic solutions. But advocates for the poor say the governor's proposed Medi-Cal cuts go way too far. KPBS Reporter Kenn

Critics Say Governor's Proposed Medi-Cal Cuts Will Hurt

Governor Schwarzenegger says solving California's budget crisis will require dramatic solutions. But advocates for the poor say the governor's proposed Medi-Cal cuts go way too far. KPBS Reporter Kenny Goldberg has the story.

The governor wants to make it tougher for low-income families to qualify for Medi-Cal.

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Under his plan, families of three making more than 13,000 dollars a year wouldn't be eligible.

The governor also wants to eliminate Medi-Cal dental and vision benefits for some three million adults.

Angela Gilliard is with the Western Center on Law and Poverty.

Angela Gilliard: These are drastic cuts that will cause harm to real people. And the kind of people that it will cause harm for are the people who are just at the edge.

The governor says the Medi-Cal cuts would save the state 715 million dollars in the next fiscal year.

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Democrat lawmakers call the cuts a non-starter.

Kenny Goldberg, KPBS News.