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A large portion of Measure A tax dollars is
used to operate Oakland’s Highland Hospital.
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ALAMEDA COUNTY | HEALTH CARE | Alameda County Supervisor Wilma Chan believes voters will not be asked to reauthorize a critical funding measure for the county’s health care system during this year’s election cycle.
Measure A, the massive and largely successful health care tax passed by voters in 2004, has gone far to shore up funding for the county’s hospitals and related health care providers. Over $100 million annually is raised through the half-cent sales tax. However, a sunset clause in the measure is due to expire in 2019.
A 31-member blue-ribbon task force was assembled last year by Alameda County Board President Nate Miley to study whether the reauthorization of Measure A should be put to voters as early as this year.
At a meeting in Alameda Wednesday night discussing the war on poverty in the county, Chan said the Board of Supervisors will begin discussion on the matter later this month. However, it is her guess the reauthorization, instead, will more likely be placed on the 2016 ballot, at the earliest.
The reason? A countywide transportation measure is already likely for the November ballot. A crowded ballot full of tax-raising initiatives might dissuade some voters from approving one or both of the potential measure. A similar measure in November 2012 for countywide improvements for transportation infrastructure was narrowly defeated by over 700 votes. The loss led Fremont Assemblymember Bob Wieckowski to ask the State Legislature for a second one-time-only exemption to place another measure on the ballot in 2014.
Placing the Measure A reauthorization on the June 3 primary ballot is also a possibility, but only gives the county already less than six months to prepare a campaign strategy. Alameda County officials may not want to be so sudden in their approach to such a crucial funding mechanism for the county’s poor and uninsured patients. Three-fourths of the proceeds from Measure A fund operation of the recently renamed Alameda Health System, which is comprised of Highland Hospital, San Leandro Hospital, John George Psychiatric Pavilion in San Leandro and eventually Alameda Hospital.
ebcitizen.com 
I'll vote no.
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A regressive Sales Tax paid by Alameda County residents has replaced the progressive Income Tax revenues of the State of California. (approximately $1 billion since 2004). This is the reason that, in California, only Alameda County has foolishly asked and received approval for a sales tax for Health Services. Measure A (2004) was approved by the voters for 15 years and ends in 2019 (why the rush?).
The State of California includes the $100 million plus in an annual revenues calculation, and deducts the great majority of this sum from the State's annual allotments to Alameda County. The relatively modest expenses incurred by the County in administrating the half-cent sales tax revenue are not included in the revenue calculations. Efforts by Alameda County to negotiate with the State of California a different interpretation of the law have not been successful.
There is an ongoing effort to have legislation introduced to change this interpretation. However in the 10 years (2004) that Measure A has been in force, this legislation has yet to be submitted.
Among the problems with a sales tax is that a resident of Alameda County will pay a half per cent more for a vehicle purchased anywhere in the State of California, as the sale tax is assessed per the place of vehicle registration.
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This is bull shit. We are being asked to coddle the deadbeats forever. I was suckered into supporting this welfare the last time around but never again. All the bleeding liberals want to do is have me pay for the indigent forever. Forget it. Life is not a great big charity pot.
Put money into more abortions, family planning, and sterilization. That's what we need. Poverty breeds poverty. Never ending cycle, and the liberals know I'm right. Need to decrease the human populations–everywhere. The world is overcrowded and we're all doomed. That's the hard fact of life.
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