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7A 'Grace period' for health insurance ends Friday Thursday, December 26, 2013 – Daily News LATINOS Continued from page 1A ago, they are older and more settled than elsewhere. As a result, they have relatively high rates of home ownership, rising incomes and are better educated. ''We're running 15 to 20 years ahead of the nation,'' said Dowell Myers, a demography and urban planning professor at the University of Southern California. ''California has a large population of second-generation children who are now coming of age. The rest of the country doesn't have that.'' As California joins New Mexico next year as the only other state where Latinos make up the largest racial or ethnic group, other regions of the country are seeing stronger growth. New Latino arrivals are reshaping the Midwest and South, just as they did California a generation ago. Santiago Vasquez, 47, fled after Mexico's economy collapsed in 1982, at the same time Central Americans abandoned their homes as civil wars spread. He came to California in 1985 to work in the fields, following other migrants who were pushed north by poverty from villages in the Mexican state of Oaxaca. They poured into Los Angeles' Koreatown, San Francisco's Mission District and other urban enclaves, joining Hispanics who came to California in previous generations - some tracing their roots back to when the state was part of Mexico. The new arrivals told friends and family back home that jobs were waiting. Rosa Lopez, 45, was one of them. She knew she wasn't cut out for hard labor on her family's Oaxacan ranch when she followed her cousin to San Diego 25 years ago. ''Once I arrived here, I never thought about going back,'' said Lopez, who eventually got a green card through her husband and became an American citizen. As defense jobs dwindled in the aftermath of the Cold War, however, and the 1990s recession hit harder than other states, new arrivals from Mexico and Central American increasingly shunned California for states where job prospects were better and housing was cheaper. The number of people living in the country illegally tripled in Iowa from 2000 to 2010, nearly doubled in Ohio and surged 55 percent in North Carolina, according to the Pew Hispanic Center. ''Once there's an immigrant beachhead, other people move in ... In the South, first people broke the ice and others followed,'' said Manuel Pastor, director of USC's Center for the Study of Immigrant Integration. In California, the previous generation of Hispanic immigrants transformed communities, such as Madera. Latino farmworkers settled near downtown, as whites moved to suburban subdivisions. Santiago Vasquez brought his wife and three daughters from Mexico in 2002, and rented an apartment in the downtown. He ended his annual tradition of picking blueberries in Oregon a few summers later and found a year-round job with a company that grows almonds and pistachios. A lack of temporary housing in other states discouraged farmworkers like Santiago from chasing the harvests, said Philip Martin, professor of agricultural and resource economics at the University of California, Davis. Some farmworkers settled in states such as Oregon and Washington, meaning fewer migrants were needed. Santiago Vasquez earns about $11,000 a year, a reminder that Latinos lag other groups on the income ladder. Latinos had a median household income of $44,401 in 2011 — well below the statewide median of $58,328. Many work in low-skilled jobs. Lopez makes about $32,000 a year cleaning offices seven days a week in San Diego. Despite her financial struggles, she recently bought a three-bedroom condominium. Sixty percent of California Latinos who have been in the U.S. at least 30 years are homeowners, six points above the state average, according to USC's Myers. ''I wasn't thinking of buying, but then I can't be throwing my money into the trash,'' she said. Lopez didn't finish high school in Mexico. Her children attend San Diego State University and community college. California's high school dropout rate among Hispanics is 16.2 percent in 2012 — compared to 13.2 percent overall — but the education gap is closing. Marjorie Garcia, 36, worked three jobs to put herself through California State University, Northridge and now practices entertainment law in Los Angeles. It is a far cry from her childhood in a rough neighborhood of Los Angeles' Panorama City area, where her family rented a two-bedroom apartment. Her father came to California from Mexico when he was 18 and her mother came from Guatemala when she was 15, and both stayed illegally. He worked as a Thai restaurant busboy and wait staff supervisor at the Los Angeles Country Club. She cleaned houses. ''I feel like I did what I was supposed to do,'' said Garcia, whose parents had only an elementary school education. ''You're supposed to go to school and get educated.'' Omar Martinez, the son of Mexican immigrants who grew up bilingual and bicultural in suburban Los Angeles, is an American success story. As a teenager, he listened more to Milli Vanilli than the Mexican music of his parents but came to appreciate his family's culture as he grew older. Martinez still has family in Zacatecas state, and heads the Federation for Zacatecans in Southern California — a group that raises money for public works projects in the Mexican state. The organization was started by migrants to California years ago, and Martinez is the first American-born president of the group. Now 42, he employs 50 people at Miravalle Foods in El Monte, which posted more than $7 million in revenues last year selling tamarind, curry, chiles and other Mexican cooking staples to supermarkets in California, Colorado and Utah. He is also raising four children to speak English and Spanish — and two of them are also learning Chinese. ''The other day they congratulated (my daughter) because she knows the numbers 1 to 100 in Chinese,'' he said in his office overlooking a pungent warehouse as workers slapped stickers on boxes. ''We think that's going to be the future, right?'' Setting it straight –––––––– It is the policy of the Daily News to correct as quickly as possible all errors in fact that have been published in the newspaper. If you feel a factual error has been made in a news story, call the news department at 527-2153. SACRAMENTO (AP) — Friday will be the end of the grace period to get health insurance starting Jan. 1 for consumers who were frustrated in their attempts to sign up by Monday's deadline. Santiago Lucero, spokesman for the agency running California's health exchange, says insurers need LAWS Continued from page 1A 26,000 pounds or less to hold a commercial Class C license. DMV Vehicle Registration Pilot Program. SB 806 authorizes DMV to establish a pilot program to evaluate the use of alternatives to stickers, tabs, license plates and registration cards, subject to certain requirements. It will also enable the DMV to experiment with electronic license plates, as well as facilitate DMV's ability to explore cost-effective alternatives to California's traditional metal license plate, plastic-coated registration stickers, and paper registration cards. Registration and Vehicle Transfers Between Family Members. AB 443 prohibits the transfer of ownership of a vehicle to a relative or a revocable living trust until all parking or toll-violation fines and penalties reported to the DMV are paid by the transferee. Teen Drivers. SB 194 will prohibit a person who is under 18 years of age from using an electronic wireless communications device to write, send or read a text-based communication while driving, even if it is equipped with a hands-free device. Veterans License Plates. AB 244 Requires the California Department of Veterans Affairs (CalVet) to sponsor a veterans' special interest license plate and requires the DMV to issue the veterans' plate if CalVet meets the current statutory requirements. This law creates, in addition to the EVERETT Continued from page 1A ing a Dignity Health North State Board event. Everett is Board Certified in Emergency Medicine and provides trauma services to Tehama and Shasta counties. He is a member of the California Emergency Physicians group and has been offering emergency medical services for Mercy Medical Center Redding and St. Elizabeth Community Hospital DINNER Continued from page 1A time to review policy applications so coverage can start in the new year. The grace period was announced Monday after it became clear that thousands of people were unable to get coverage because the website and call centers were overwhelmed. NUMBERS Continued from page 1A region 1. "Northern California counties are important to our success," Executive Director Peter Lee said. "While it is good news that so many who live in these counties have signed up, Californians all have one more week — until Dec. 23 — to enroll for coverage taking effect Jan. 1." Last week Covered California and DHCS released statewide figures showing that applications were started for an estimated 777,000 individuals between Oct. 1 and Nov. 30. For the two-month period statewide, 109,296 individuals enrolled in Covered California be required to meet all other driver license qualifications. For complete information on chaptered bills enacted in 2013, please refer to the Legislative Counsel website at www.LegInfo.ca.gov. The DMV offers an array of services to customers 24 hours a day, 7 days a week through its website including online advance appointments for written and drive tests; vehicle registration and driver license renewals, selection of personalized license plates, changes of address and payment of fees via secure debit transactions. Customers can also effect transactions by calling DMV customer service at (800) 777–0133. DMV is a department under the California State Transportation Agency (CalSTA). to each interaction. He demonstrates excellence in patient care and leadership by always focusing on what is best for the patient. Everett is kind, gentle, easy to work with, always professional, and worked through the electronic health record implementation with a smile on his face. The Sisters of Mercy, Dignity Health North State Community Board and St. Elizabeth Community Hospital employees, medical staff and volunteers are honored to work with Everett. (Northern California) Farm Credit and Crossroads Feed & Ranch Supply; in Corning and Red Bluff at Rabobank health insurance plans. For the same period, 179,000 were determined to be likely eligible for Medi-Cal. Other facts about Northern California counties' enrollment figures: • All of the consumers chose one of three health insurance carriers that have traditionally been the largest in the individual market: Blue Shield of California, Anthem Blue Cross of California and Kaiser Permanente. • For the individuals who were eligible for subsidies, the great majority (68 percent) selected the "Silver" level of benefits, which is the level at which the federal premium assistance is targeted. Those who are not eligible for subsidies were more likely to buy across the spectrum of levels of coverage. Dec. 23 is the deadline for consumers to enroll for health insurance will still be administered in a classroom on campus or at a test center. Continued from page 1A Katya Lavine, a senior at the UCLA who has graduation requirements taken two online classes, faster.'' said there are some limMost final exams for its to online education. the Web-based classes ''It's a lot harder to UC current Honoring Veterans design of the Veteran's Organization Plate, a new program to reissue the Veteran design that was issued prior to Jan. 1, 2010. These plates are available to all vehicle owners. The Department of Veterans Affairs must secure 7,500 pre-paid applications in order for the department to implement this plate program. Additionally, the Department of Motor Vehicles will begin the process of implementing AB 60 — the new law requiring DMV to issue a driver license to an applicant who is unable to submit satisfactory proof that he is legally present in the Unites States —by drafting new regulations and preparing field offices to process new applications. The new law becomes operative by Jan. 1, 2015. The applicant will since 2004. Everett is a graduate of the Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine and received his emergency medicine fellowship from Albert Einstein Medical Center, Philadelphia. Comments from the nominations include; Everett conducts himself in ways that align with the Mission of the Sisters of Mercy and Dignity Health. Whether working shoulder to shoulder with staff and colleagues or at the bedside, he brings an element of dignity and humankindness Bluff at Hawes Ranch & Farm Supply, The Loft, Animal Health (Walco), Red Bluff Bull & Gelding Sale, Golden State It applies to anyone who attempted to start an application Monday, although many people were not even able to get that far. On Tuesday, Lucero encouraged people to keep trying to reach a call center, even if they could not prove their attempts to get coverage before the deadline. and AmericanWest (formerly PremierWest) Bank; and in Cottonwood at Shasta Farm and Equipment. coverage taking effect Jan. 1, 2014, but Lee pointed out that consumers can continue enrolling in Covered California plans through March 31, 2014. Medi-Cal enrollment is continuous throughout the year. Lee reminded consumers of the many paths they can take to enroll in Covered California health insurance plans and in Medi-Cal, including meeting in person with thousands of trained Certified Insurance Agents, Certified Enrollment Counselors and county eligibility workers, who can provide assistance with completing applications. Consumers can find the nearest in-person help on CoveredCA.com. Additionally, selfenrollment is available online, and enrollment can be completed over the phone by calling Covered California's Service Center at (800) 300-1506. stay on top of the work and be motivated when you are not going physically to a class. The lack of face-to-face classes makes it seem less real,'' she said. Still, Lavine plans to take an online Spanish course with UC Davis after not being able to register for the class at her home campus because of overcrowding. ''For me, it was definitely a good solution,'' the English major said. Decade after Christmas mudslide, memories remain SAN BERNARDINO (AP) — A decade after a Christmas Day mudslide swept through a Southern California church mountain retreat, worshippers have continued their mission at a new spot. Fourteen people — including nine children — were killed on Dec. 25, 2003, when a flood of water, boulders and debris tore through a campground in the foothills of San Bernardino, 60 miles east of Los Angeles. Members of the St. Sophia Greek Orthodox Church and Foundation held summer and winter camps at the 45-acre site at Waterman Canyon for more than four decades. Now, the group holds summer camp in nearby Crestline and has abandoned winter sessions, the Riverside Press-Enterprise reported in Wednesday's editions (http://bit.ly/JdsS3G ). Before the deadly mudslide, a swath of the hillside had been scarred by fall wildfires, leaving the area prone to erosion and flash flooding. A Pacific storm that Christmas dropped nearly 4 inches of rain on the region. ''By the time it got to the camp, it was a moving wall of material that was going quite rapidly and really blasted through the camp,'' said John Peterson, an attorney who represented the camp in litigation. Since the deadly mudslide, several lawsuits were filed against the camp, San Bernardino County and the California Department of Transportation. Survivors and victims' families sued the church after the tragedy, and the church settled the lawsuit in 2008 for $13 million. ''It was pretty traumatic,'' Peter Koulous said of the Christmas flood. Koulous attended the camp when he was young, as did his five children. His grandchildren will continue the tradition at the camp's new location.