Cultural Revolution in San Francisco’s Health Access Plan!

Being Friday, I thought I’d lay off the heavy analysis and have some fun with my old bugaboo, San Francisco’s pointless and expensive Health Access Plan. As discussed before, I am at a loss to understand what this program achieves, other than levying a “pay or play” tax on employers to fund the city’s public health bureaucracy. Yesterday, I was walking to a PRI reception for Michael Medved, when I saw this ad on a billboard on Stockton Street in Chinatown:

The ad is for the SF Health Access Plan (which you can see if you squint at the bottom left-hand corner of the billboard). My Chinese is pretty weak (honestly, non-existent, but I have more educated colleagues), but I understand that the slogan has something to do with becoming a “strong woman”.

So, our deficit-ridden city is unlikely to get any private medical clinics or hospitals to join its network, but it can get your kid to touch her toes. I suppose it’s because I don’t read Chinese, but this billboard eerily reminds me of some of the posters of children from Mao’s Cultural Revolution – but with better production values.

I still have no idea if the SF HAP is improving anyone’s access to health care or improving health outcomes, but now I know that there’s at least one ad agency and photographer profiting from this new tax on San Francisco’s small businesses.

Nothing contained in this blog is to be construed as necessarily reflecting the views of the Pacific Research Institute or as an attempt to thwart or aid the passage of any legislation.

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