" Children can already get their asthma medication, etc. Medical care is already available for those who can't pay. The thinking behind insuring everyone is that parents will take their kids more often. A lot of poor people don't want the hassle associated wtih getting free or reduced cost care. But if the government runs the insurance we will have the same thing. Here's the dilemma. Health care is so expensive that services have to be restricted, everyone can't do everything they want medically or it would cost more than we could even nearly afford. So somewhere someone has to decide that some people can't get some services. Now the insurance companies do it. After universal health care or single payer, then the government will do it. Who do you think will do a better job? at lower cost? One thing you will find with every other country that has socialized medicine is that access to care is restricted. The reason they want to do govt paid health care is to increase access to services, and it will never happen, it can't it would bankrupt the whole economy. What we have to do is make health care less expensive, and that will not happen by the government taking it over. "

" Diel, you need to send your letter to Pelosi and ask why she continues to politicize this issue instead of sending the President a SCHIPs bill that he can sign. Continuing to send the President bills that he has promised to veto is purely partisan posturing on her part. Many Democrats are beginning to realize that the Democrats in Congress are not accomplishing anything, have not kept the promises they made last November and are merely trying to play "prevent defense" to get through the elections of 2008. President Bush has promised to sign a SCHIPs bill with expanded coverage for children, that does not include adults, illegals and families making $62,000 per year. The Democrats should send him that bill and quit playing games. "

" Until the first step to enrollment is verification of legal residency I'm against any form of govenment run or funded health care. Our emergency rooms are already open to anyone in need of emergency care. That's reasonable. But we do not have the resources or even the responsibility to provide health insurance to every person who runs, digs or swims thier way accross our border. "

" I'm warming to this idea; if anyone knows how providing health care insurance to all California *children* under 18yo would severely adversely affect our California economy, I'm all ears. But I do hate the idea of children, who can't pick their parents, and some of whom have parents who are working poor, to go without their asthma medications, their vaccinations, the watchful eye of a pediatrician. I don't agree with a bond measure, I want budget cuts and I would even agree to increased taxes with strict oversight to ensure efficiency (quit laughing, I know...) But seriously, children can't do this for themselves. Can this be done economically? One point I'm having trouble with is WHY it takes $30 MILLION for outreach to POSSIBLY enroll 94,000 children (but not provide insurance?) Is this right? That's insane. There has to be a better, more efficient, less-costly way, such as allowing insurance companies (reputable, by invitation only) to enroll low-income children into their insurance plans that California pays the premiums for. This could be a win-win, since children tend to be, on the whole, lower utilizers of healthcare, and so their premium dollars help to offset the costs for older and/or sicker patients. I want children to have healthcare, but I really want there to be a smart way to provide it--I want the taxpayers to get good VALUE from the investment. I don't want our money going to a lazy inefficient bureaucracy or sheister insurance companies. (I'm not labeling all insurance companies as sheisters, mind you, just the sheisters. Most of the big names are getting the job done for most people.) "

" We're paying some of the highest taxes in the nation already, and it is being spent very inefficiently! If they can't figure out a way to do it with what they've taken from us already, FORGET IT. "