The California Science and Health Research Bond Act would put a ballot measure before voters this November. If passed, it would restore $23 billion in funding to a broad range of life-saving scientific research in California.
Dana Neely
Getty Images
In the summer of 2022, I was diagnosed with metastatic breast cancer that had spread to my spine. I was also 24 weeks pregnant with our family’s fourth child.
Terrified, my husband and I began sorting through options. We found Dr. Hope Rugo at UC San Francisco, an empathetic physician working on a number of clinical trials that could benefit me directly, as well as thousands of other women. I remember Rugo saying: “The bad news is your cancer is not curable. The good news is, it is treatable.”
Metastatic breast cancer is one of many strains of cancer that cannot be cured today. It’s because over the years, patients like me have participated in a clinical trial, giving me access to groundbreaking research to treat this disease.
So you can imagine the pain and anger I have felt over the past year watching the Trump administration strip funding away from medical research and care. The message was unmistakable: life-saving research can be held hostage to politics.
Advances in cancer treatment will make it possible for me to watch my kids grow up, to get to the golden years with my husband, to continue to participate in my community and to work. The deliberate choice to defund this research has had a massive impact on my family and my life, and the lives of countless others.
Here’s the good news: I felt incredible optimism and relief when Sen. Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco) stepped up in response to recent cuts to introduce the California Science and Health Research Bond Act (Senate Bill 895), which would put a ballot measure before voters this November. If passed, it would restore $23 billion in funding to a broad range of life-saving scientific research in California.
Wiener’s bill could help you or someone you love by continuing research for cancer, heart disease, diabetes, Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s and more. It would allow the state to award grants and make loans to researchers at California’s public and private universities, research companies and other institutes for scientific research and development. Taking control of our scientific research is something Californians must do.
The legislation also includes provisions to lower health care costs for Californians. It would mean that pharmaceuticals developed with California tax dollars would be accessible to Californians who might otherwise struggle to afford them. And it could allow the state to recoup a portion of profits from inventions and technologies that have been funded by its taxpayers.
SB 895 currently has wide support, but it needs to be passed by two-thirds of the State Assembly and Senate and signed by Gov. Gavin Newsom. Every single state legislator represents families grappling with devastating diseases, and this bond should be a priority for all of them.
In 2026, 626,000 Americans are projected to die of cancer, including 206,000 Californians. It is the leading cause of death for those under 65 years of age, and the most common cause of death by disease for our children. Most of the 18 million Americans living with invasive cancer do not speak out in newspapers, but trust me, the pain is still there.
This experience has been a visceral reminder that who we elect matters. Our civic participation matters. In some cases, it really is life or death.
Betsy Hoover is the co-founder of Higher Ground Labs, a venture capital fund focused on progressive campaign technology and startups. She previously served as the national digital organizing director on the Obama for President Campaign. She lives in Lafayette with her husband and children.
Related Stories from Sacramento Bee