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Years
Vol. 65 No. 45| Thursday, November 6, 2025
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Serving San Diego County’s African & African American Communities 65 Years
HALFWAY TO CHAINS: WHAT’S ALREADY BEEN ENFORCED UNDER PROJECT 2025
HAPPY VETERANS DAY Honoring All Who Served
By Stacy M. Brown
BLACK PRESS USA SENIOR NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT They said it would never happen here. Yet here we are. Forty-eight percent of Project 2025, the Heritage Foundation’s fascist playbook for dismantling American democracy, has already been put into motion. Nearly half of this regime’s roadmap to erase civil rights, gut public programs, and reimpose racial hierarchy has been realized, with Black America once again standing at the edge of the abyss.
FROM THE PUBLISHER:
PHOTO: Blackpressusa
See CHAINS page 2
COVERED CALIFORNIA’S INSIDE THIS OPEN ENROLLMENT 2026 WEEK'S ISSUE:
PUBLISHER, SAN DIEGO VOICE & VIEWPOINT NEWSPAPER CHAIRMAN OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS, NNPA
AMERICA’S LONG HISTORY OF BLACK VOTER SUPPRESSION SEE PAGES 6-7
VOICE & VIEWPOINT NEWSWIRE Covered California kicked off its open-enrollment period for 2026 coverage on Nov. 1 amid uncertainty surrounding the enhanced premium tax credits that have delivered greater affordability and record enrollment across the nation. This marks the 13th open-enrollment period under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, which since its inception has helped tens of millions of Americans access health insurance, including a record nearly 2 million Californians heading into 2026. Today, more than 24 million Americans are insured through a marketplace plan. Open enrollment, which runs through Jan. 31, 2026, is when Californians can sign up for, renew or shop for a new health insurance plan. Since 2021, the federal government has helped millions of Americans afford health insurance through enhanced premium tax credits that reduce the cost of monthly premiums. The federal government made premium tax credits for lower-income enrollees more generous and provided tax credits to middle income consumers for the first time, putting money directly back in the pockets of consumers. Those enhanced tax credits are set to expire at the end of this year without Congressional action and have been the key point of debate in the ongoing federal government shutdown. Without an extension of the enhanced premium tax credits, monthly premiums are projected to rise by 97 percent on average for more than 1.7 million Californians enrolled and receiving financial assistance through Covered California. This includes more than 160,000 middle-income consumers who currently receive the federal enhanced premium tax credits but would lose eligibility in 2026. Faced with the full premium cost of coverage without financial help, they would be at risk of dropping health insurance. See OPEN ENROLLMENT page 2
WE REMEMBER BLACK VETERANS WITH HONOR By Dr. John E. Warren
Facts and Information
In Southern California, there are 604,000 uninsured Californians who are eligible for Covered California subsidies (246,000) or no-cost Medi-Cal coverage (358,000). IMAGE: Covered California
IMAGE: NNPA
On November 11, 2025 Americans will honor those brave men and women who have served in the military. As a reminder, it all started on November 11, 1918, when an Armistice between the Allied forces of World War I and Germany went into effect. In November 1919, President Woodrow Wilson declared November 11th Armistice Day, in recognition of the end of the War that was to end all Wars. In 1938, the U.S. Congress passed an Act declaring November 11, Armistice Day, a national holiday. In 1954, after World War II, President Dwight D. Eisenhower proposed and the Congress approved changing the name Armistice Day to Veterans Day, honoring all Americans who had served in all wars. See HONOR page 3
FEDERAL GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWN DELAYS CALFRESH BENEFITS Stay Informed By Checking the County’s CalFresh Website
VOICE & VIEWPOINT NEWSWIRE The federal government shutdown that began on Oct. 1, 2025, will now delay CalFresh benefits being issued regardless of whether a budget deal is reached this week. The length of the delay for people to receive November benefits is unknown at this time. It will depend on when the government reopens and the amount of time to restart
the federal funding of benefits.
PHOTO: County News Center
CalFresh beneficiaries who have a balance on their EBT card from prior months [are] still able to use their benefits on Nov. 1 and after. CalFresh is the federal food assistance program known as Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and also commonly referred to as EBT or Food Stamps.
CalFresh benefits are 100 percent federally funded. People can stay informed by checking both the County’s CalFresh website, and the BenefitsCal website for updates. CalFresh beneficiaries can check their balance by calling the number on the back of the EBT card. See CALFRESH page 2
MILLIONS FACE THREATS TO THEIR HEALTH COVERAGE, EXPERTS OFFER PRACTICAL ADVICE By Edward Henderson
CALIFORNIA BLACK MEDIA
PHOTO: CBM
For years, Los Angeles-based painter Mia Gardner has relied on side jobs and part-time work to keep her art career afloat. But lately, her biggest challenge hasn’t been finding inspiration — it’s finding
affordable health insurance.
“I looked at the marketplace last month, and the lowest plan I could find was nearly $500 a month,” Gardner said. “That’s half my share of rent. I’ve had to skip checkups and just hope nothing major happens.” See ADVICE page 2
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