The Jewish Federation-Council of Greater Los Angeles has voiced strong opposition to cutbacks in the Medical and State welfare programs. and a proposed elimination of three Jewish chaplaincy positions at State hospitals. The JFC Board of Directors endorsed legislation which would restore the Medi-Cal reductions made effective last December and declared that reduced welfare payments should not be used to balance the State’s budget. The board also said that of all religious groups, only Jewish chaplains’ positions were being eliminated from the Department of Mental Hygiene’s budget. According to Robert Well, chairman of the JFC’s Community Relations Committee, “This is more than a matter of the loss of three positions. These cuts constitute an attack on the principal of professional chaplaincy as such, and they are the concern of all religious groups. In addition to being a vital part of the hospital team, which treats patients, and for which they are especially trained, chaplains also counsel and work closely with patients’ families. This is an important factor in affecting any cure.”
Weil said that despite assurances by the Governor that no such changes are planned, the Department is proceeding with the projected elimination of the services. He said the move may well be the forerunner of further inroads into the religious services provided State hospital patients. The JFC Board said that Medi-Cal reductions have affected the availability of mental health treatment for individual in local communities. At least two Jewish homes for the aged have had to absorb an additional $150,000 in costs as a result of the Medi-Cal slashes, it was reported. The Board endorsed Assembly Bill 586 which would limit the county responsibility for costs of the Medi-Cal program to the amount expended in 1970-71, and which requires that “the State shall pay for the 1970-71 fiscal year any amounts above such county costs.” The Board expressed the fear that cuts in the welfare budget would reduce “drastically” the amount now received by families receiving State aid and would endanger matching Federal grants. The JFC Board also expressed the opinion that welfare cuts cannot be imposed without further endangering health and welfare of thousands of people depending on society for their survival.
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The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
