As goes California …
State officials say they need 20,000 people for the job of signing up millions of Californians for health insurance in the coming months, but a battle is brewing over whether these workers should undergo background checks and fingerprinting.
At issue is the level of screening these “assisters” should receive before they handle confidential information about the people they are enrolling this year in the state’s new health insurance exchange, called Covered California.
These enrollers, who will earn $58 from the state for every application completed, would have access to highly sensitive consumer information such as Social Security numbers, dates of birth, income data and tax returns.
Covered California, the state agency implementing the federal healthcare law, says these enrollment advisors must be thoroughly screened to deter fraud and protect consumers. But critics say the state’s proposal is overly intrusive and will prevent too many minorities from helping at a time when enormous manpower and quick action are required. […]
These 20,000 assisters across California would not be government employees. Nonprofit and other community groups that are working with the state on outreach and enrollment will be responsible for recruiting and hiring many of them.
Awww! Community organizers in charge in herding upwards of 5 million people into ObamaCare.
Carla Saporta, health policy director at the Greenlining Institute, a nonprofit group that advocates for racial and economic justice, has urged the state insurance exchange to proceed carefully.
“Background checks would create barriers for a lot of communities of color and disproportionately exclude African American and Latino men from participating,” she said. “We need a massive amount of people to help with outreach.”
It should be noted that the Los Angeles Times felt no need to put the phrase racial and economic justice in quotes, nor describe this group as “leftwing” or “liberal”. One quick look at the Greenlining site would easily disabuse anyone of the notion that it anything but a partisan, leftwing organization — e.g. Van Jones will be giving the keynote address at their May 17th summit.
In the view of such “Justice advocates”, background checks and fingerprinting is just Old White Man(tm) trying to keep down the New Majority.
And not only is $290 million not enough, if The Man insists on background checks, they demand He pay for these, too
If the state does proceed with its proposal, some healthcare advocates say Covered California should foot the $1.4-million cost for the background checks during the first year.
Promoting the inclusion of criminals at the expense of law-abiding citizens. Refusal to properly describe the community groups fighting backgrounds checks.
Hey, it’s the new normal! And coming to a state near you.
It looks as though she’s suggesting that African American and Latino men are disproportionally criminals. I’m pretty sure that’s racist.
I thought background checks were common sense measures needed to close loopholes.
letting criminals sign up people is ok
but not walmart?
Background checks are raaaaacist because BIRTHERS!!!!1!!!
It’s bad to be intrusive toward a potentially criminal enterprise, especially when the intrusion would filter demonstrable criminals: it’s just improperly unbalanced — disproportional being the term of art — when the question of lining pockets with generous government green is concerned.
Lex Luthor, where are you and your missiles?
“Learn to swim. See you down in Arizona Bay…”
OT: I just heard a white analyst on ESPN mention a “spook factor” when discussing NBA teams that could challenge for the playoffs.
Cries of raaaaacism in 5… 4… 3…
Reacting to the hubbub over the “assisters” the “Guv” orders stringent background checks to be done by competent authority and for there to be an oath of office taken by those who pass the checks.
eCurmudgeon,
The only way to fix it is to flush it all away?
Oy. I love California, but I am so glad I don’t live there anymore. My once beautiful Golden State is now the not so perfect marriage of Mississippi and Manhattan.
When I left California, I planned to move back as soon as I could. Now, I would only move back if I had to for family reasons.
There’s another Tool song with a rather indelicate title that’s a good description of the GOP leadership and its base these days.
“This may hurt a little, but it’s something you’ll get used to.”
The only way I would end up back in California is if that’s where the re-education camps are located.
We are not French. And it shows.
So blacks and Latinos can’t pass background checks, because they’re so crooked, but somehow its wrong to bring this up? Seriously, fuck em. If they can’t pass background checks, they shouldn’t be working in sensitive areas. Maybe they can teach their kids to learn from their parents idiotic mistakes.
Why do we keep coddling the stupid and the immoral?
Why do we keep coddling the stupid and the immoral?
Probably because there are no such things. Eliminative materialism! Catch it!
They’d be handling extremely sensetive personal info.
Screened? How about BONDED?
The political class takes care of its own.
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