SITUATION:  City College has traditionally been a resource for all San Franciscans, but in 2019 90% of the offerings from the Older Adults Department were eliminated. 

Older Women’s League-SF has always been a strong supporter of City College and applauds the opportunities that CCSF has offered to younger people, but today we  are asking, “Why have you forgotten Older Adults?” 

The importance of lifelong learning, having an active mind, socialization, and community engagement are well known preventative steps to increase health and even longevity. These things are lost when City College cuts classes for Older Adults.
 
ACTION: Email or call the Board of Trustees and the CCSF Chancellor demanding restoration of programs for Older Adults. Remind officials that overlooking older adults is not only unjust, but that it hurts the entire community.

ALSO: Please share this message with friends, family and colleagues.
 
CCSF CONTACT INFO: 

CHANCELLOR
David Martin: dmartin@ccsf.edu.   Phone: 415-239-3303

BOARD OF TRUSTEES
Alan Wong, President: alanwong@ccsf.edu
Aliya Chisti: achisti@ccsf.edu
Murrell Greetn: murrellgreen@ccsf.edu
Anita Martinez, Vice President: anitamartinez@ccsf.edu
Susan Solomon: ssolomon@ccsf.edu
Vick Van Chung: vchung@ccsf.edu
Shanell Williams: swilliams@ccsf.edu
Heather Brandt, Student Trustee: studenttrustee@mail.ccsf.edu

SITUATION:  Medigap is an extra insurance policy that Medicare recipients can buy to help pay out-of-pocket costs not covered by Medicare. Presently, if an enrollee does not purchase a Medigap plan during their initial Medicare enrollment period, signing up for it later is difficult and more costly.

CASB 1236 creates open enrollment opportunities for Medicare beneficiaries to choose a Medigap policy between January 1 and March 31 annually—the same time frame for signing up for Medicare Advantage plans and others. 

This bill will have its first hearing April 24 at 1:30 in the Senate Health Committee.

ACTION:
1) Call your CA Senate member this week and ask them to support SB 1236!!!
Senator Scott Wiener: (916) 651-4011.
Click HERE to locate State Senators outside of San Francisco.
2) Email the Senate Health committee this week and ask them to forward your comments to the Senate Health Committee members. Email them here: SHEA.Committee@senate.ca.gov
3) Share this message with friends, family and colleagues in California.

You can watch or listen to hearing on April 24, 2024 at 1:30 p.m. HERE.

SITUATION:  People living in Residential Care Facilities (RCFEs) often feel that their complaints go unheeded, even when a formal complaint is filed. California Assembly Bill 1911 makes the complaint process in RCFEs more timely, efficient and fair, by:

• Putting an end to the practice of informally screening complaints, and not telling the complainant if their issue is not going forward,
   
• Imposing investigation deadlines for RCFE complaints that align with deadlines for nursing home complaint investigations, 
   
• Requiring written notice to the complainant when their complaint is received and assigned for investigation, and
   
• Creating a right to appeal investigation findings.

ACTION: Contact your assembly member and ask them to vote Yes on AB 1911.

• Click HERE to contact Assembly Member Matt Haney, District 17.
• Click HERE to contact Assembly Member Phil Ting, District 19.
• Click HERE to identify and locate State Assembly Members outside of San Francisco.

CALL TO ACTION: SB 980 HEARING ON MARCH 20TH!

CARAs sponsored bill, SB 980 (Wahab) which expands the Medi-Cal Dental benefit to cover implants –  impacting over 1.6 million Medi-Cal Senior beneficiaries – will be heard in the Senate Health Committee on MARCH 20TH. Visit our Positions Letters page to learn more about the bill, get your organization to submit a support letter, and join us in Sacramento on MARCH 20TH! If you would like to join our CARA Lobby Team on March 20th, please contact Dwane Camp at dcamp.cara@gmail.com . You can submit a letter directly on our Website HERE – Thank you!

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CARA’s STATEWIDE LOBBY DAY TRAINING

FRIDAY, MARCH 22ND AT 12 NOON

REGISTER HERE: https://bit.ly/CARALobby24

CARA’s Statewide (Virtual) Lobby Day will be held on Friday, APRIL 12TH, when we will talk to the 120 legislative offices (CARA CATs will host these).  If you want to attend, email caralobby@gmail.com to let us know which legislators you would like to talk with and we will send you the details.

In preparation for our Lobby Day, PLEASE register for our Lobby Day Training- Fabulous Friday Forum on March 22nd to learn more about our priority bills and how to conduct our virtual lobby visits.  REGISTER AT https://bit.ly/CARALobby24

SITUATION: California Assembly Bill 2200—known as the California Guaranteed Health Care For All Act, introduced by Democratic Assemblyman Ash Kalra—sets in motion a single-payer health care coverage system in California, called CalCare, for all residents, regardless of citizenship status. By streamlining payments and lowering per-capita health care spending, CalCare guarantees quality health care and long term care without creating barriers to care or out of pocket costs.

This crucial legislation needs to be heard and voted on by the Assembly Health Committee within the next two months in order to move forward. 

ACTION: National Nurses United is holding house parties all over California to plan future actions to support the passage of the bill. Get together with other activists and learn about a plan to win, in a fun, informative and empowering gathering. 

The San Francisco house party is Thursday, March 21 at 6 p.m., 1407 5th Avenue, Apt A (top buzzer). Click HERE to register. See National Nurses United-CalCare for more information and ways to get involved. 

Please also share this message with colleagues, friends and family in California. 

SITUATION: The Coalition to End Biased Stops has been working for over 2 years to eliminate racially biased police stops in SF. The Police Commission did finally vote unanimously in favor of Department General Order 9.07, a comprehensive policy to prohibit racially-biased traffic stops in San Francisco. HOWEVER – since then, this policy has been stuck in the “meet and confer process” with the Police Officer’s Association (POA).

It has taken nearly an entire year, but the policy is finally coming back to the Police Commission for its second and final vote TOMORROW, February 21st.

ACTION:

• Please take 20 seconds to send an email to the commission urging them to finally implement DGO 9.07 by using this easy email tool.
• Please post on social media, urging the commission to finally implement DGO 9.07, using this social media toolkit!
• Meet us at Police Commission tomorrow at 6:30pm at City Hall, Room 400! We want to show force, and while the meeting starts at 5:30pm, this item is 8^th on the agenda.

To learn more about DGO 9.07, why it’s so important for our clients, and why it has been held up so long, please read this letter drafted by the coalition.

And please share this message with colleagues, friends and family in San Francisco.

SAN FRANCISCO PROPOSITIONS A, B, E, AND F
RECOMMENDATIONS

The OWL Board studied these Propositions on the ballot for the March 5th election in San Francisco and came to the following conclusions:

YES ON A – Bond issue for affordable housing including designations for seniors, families and abuse survivors.

NO ON B – Dubbed the “Cop Tax” and would require approval of new taxes to support this vital service which should be funded from current tax. Would actually delay increasing police force.

NO ON E – Decreases oversight by Police Commission, allows increase of dangerous vehicle chases on our crowded streets, allows more use of surveillance technologies without safeguards, decreases police accountability by decreasing reports of “incidents.”  

NO ON F – This proposition would require anyone receiving CAAP/public assistance benefits to be screened for substance use and if dependent on illegal drugs referred for professional evaluation and possible treatment. If they refuse, they will lose their public assistance money that they depend on to live! This measure is punitive, intrusive and depends on treatment services that are currently scarce and not easily accessible. 

SITUATION: Understanding our courts is vital to preserving justice. We have wanted an informative discussion on why independent judiciaries matter and how voters can thoughtfully evaluate judicial candidates. To educate ourselves on our judicial system before casting our ballot.
 
ACTION: Sign up and join the League of Women Voters SF on February 1 for an informative discussion on why independent judiciaries matter and how voters can thoughtfully evaluate judicial candidates. With nonpartisan insights from prominent judges, this event will empower you to consider qualifications, over money and politics, when choosing the judges who serve our communities. Leave informed and inspired about citizens’ impact in upholding the integrity of America’s courts. Click HERE to sign up for the event.

AND: Forward this message to friends, family and colleagues.

SITUATION:  City College of San Francisco does not yet have or follow a climate action and sustainability plan, despite efforts begun almost two decades ago. As one of the largest property owners in San Francisco, CCSF must do its part to ensure and contribute to a sustainable future and a just transition to a green, all-electric City.
 

ACTION:  Before Jan. 25 urge the City College Board to support the proposed resolution Supporting a Green New Deal for City College and Adopting a Climate Action and Sustainability Plan. (See the full text of the Resolution here. ) You can voice your support in person, by phone or in writing. Click here to access information on all forms of support on City College website and read the suggested talking points.

ALSO: Share this message with friends, family and colleagues in the San Francisco Bay Area.