Governor Schwarzenegger and Democratic leaders are still trying to hammer out a deal to reform the state's troubled healthcare system. The two sides are said to be getting closer, but there are two big sticking points: affordability, and financing. KPBS reporter Kenny Goldberg has more.
Democrats have agreed with the governor to require everyone to have health insurance. But they want to make sure people don't have to spend more than six-and-a-half percent of their income on premiums. The governor wants to pay for healthcare in part by leasing the state lottery. The Democrats want to raise tobacco taxes instead.
Anthony Wright is with the non-profit group Health Access .
Schwarzenegger : You know, at some level this is a situation of so close, yet so far, that there are a lot of areas of agreement and consensus, but there's still some disagreements that are major and that need to be resolved in the next several days.
Democratic leaders have postponed a vote on the reform package so the two sides can work out their differences. The governor says he's confident they'll strike a deal.
Kenny Goldberg, KPBS News.
