Advocates for California seniors and people with disabilities are calling for an end to budget cuts to the in-home supportive services program.
A couple hundred union members and patients rallied at the Capitol today. Union leader Loretta Stevens says the IHSS program isn’t set up to deal with the growing patient population. “That’s why we’re here today in support of an innovative approach that will stabilize long-term care, providers’ roles and create better health outcomes for consumers," said Stevens.
The unions generally support Governor Jerry Brown’s budget proposal to consolidate IHSS with Medicare and Medi-Cal for Californians who belong to multiple programs. But they want the hundreds of millions of dollars in savings to be reinvested in the programs, rather than go towards reducing the deficit.
The two Democratic legislative leaders spoke at the rally as well. But their offices declined to say whether they actively support the unions’ proposal to reinvest the savings.
