Thousands of people are unemployed in California’s Stanislaus County, leaving the Stanislaus County Board of Supervisors facing a moral dilemma: should they put aside their political leanings in the interest of 140 new jobs?
County officials had to decide whether it was more important to maintain their political values or to allow the county to become a regional call center to answer questions about the healthcare benefits available under Obama’s healthcare mandate.
For them, it came down to whether or not they should do what they considered the “wrong” thing for the right reason: bringing jobs to their area.
California is poised for three ObamaCare call centers: one in Southern California, one in Sacramento, and a third “hybrid state-county state center.” If selected, Stanislaus County would become the third call center – the hybrid. Stanislaus County may have a leg up on the competition from other California counties, as they have demonstrated experience in this area through the call center that aids applicants for Cal Fresh, CalWORKS and Medi-Cal.
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Tuesday, four of the five conservatives serving on the County Board of Supervisors – Dick Monteith, Bill O’Brien, Vito Chiesa and Terry Withrow – decided to vote in favor of jobs. The new call center would be financed by state and federal dollars, bringing much-needed jobs to the area.
Jim DeMartini maintained that the county should focus its interest on jobs in the private sector.
Regardless of how citizens feel about Obama’s healthcare plan and what it will mean for them, these new call centers will provide relief for many jobless individuals. Though it’s easy to see why some politicians would be reticent to bid on such a contract, giving up jobs for one’s county will not stop the laws from going into effect, and there will be many counties with jobless workers clamoring to become a new call center.