Monterey County Community Members: “Healthcare is a Great Debt We Owe County Workers”
“Monterey County workers keep our county functioning and our neighbors safe during this time of crisis. We can stay at home because they are working, and are at risk. We owe them a great debt and at the VERY LEAST, their healthcare should not be cut during an ongoing, unpredictable, and enduring pandemic. As a constituent of Monterey County and a Professor of Public Policy who studies issues related to governance and public institutions, social inequality, and social policy. I am horrified at the working conditions facing Monterey County employees, who face a drastic change to their health insurance at the exact time that they have put their lives on the line as frontline workers during this pandemic. Their efforts have kept our county functioning during this time of crisis, and kept ourselves and our neighbors safe. Put simply, we can stay at home because they have been at work, and at risk. We owe them a great debt. Or, at the VERY LEAST, we should not cut their healthcare during an ongoing, unpredictable, and enduring pandemic, as they continue to work on the front lines of a dynamic situation. To be honest, I can’t believe this is even on the table. I implore you to follow CalPERS’ lead and acknowledge that PERS Platinum best matches the coverage provided under PERS Choice. I teach my students that good public policy requires government to prioritize about the public good, and to think in longer timeframes.
Sometimes the money that we spend in our public agencies and on public services are investments in our collective future. Healthcare is one such expense. We should invest in our workers, who not only will cost the system less in the long-run as they seek preventative healthcare (which is cheaper), but help people across our county to live, work, and thrive. When viewed in this way, investing in the health of our county public employees in a small cost that will pay enormous dividends for us all. I stand with county workers and demand current providers, coverages, co-pays, and premiums continue with no disruption to avoid further impacting their health and well-being. Join Monterey community members in protecting the healthcare of essential workers: add your name to our petition now!”
-In Unity, Jovanna Rosen, Assistant Professor of Public Policy