Life on the edge

Fortunately, in mid-July the Legislature's budget conference committee approved a new budget that would undo the governor's $1.5 billion in cuts. It remains to be seen, however, whether the committee's budget can get the two-thirds majority it needs to pass the Legislature. It relies on a $9.7-billion tax increase, which numerous legislators -- including budget committee members from Sacramento and Riverside counties -- have vowed to reject.

Of course, none of them live in Los Angeles County.

And so this budget battle is not just about the fate of a few hospitals or clinics; it is about the long-term viability of Los Angeles County and the well-being of everyone -- insured and uninsured -- who lives here.

A homeless man living under the Santa Monica Pier recently told a Venice Family Clinic physician doing street outreach that after Hurricane Katrina, he fled New Orleans, heading due west on Interstate 10.

"This is as far as it goes," he explained, implying that if he could have gotten any farther from New Orleans, he would have.

Naturally, this makes one wonder where we would all go if Los Angeles were to suffer a similar calamity, because its healthcare system certainly isn't equipped to handle such an emergency.

Perhaps Sacramento and Riverside have room for us.