Candidate for
Insurance Commissioner; Democratic Party

Hector De La Torre has spent his career standing up to powerful special interests to protect workers, consumers and taxpayers. He has taken on the tough fights from corrupt politicians to heartless insurance companies and won.

Personal experience taught De La Torre what it's like to deal with health insurance companies. When a rare infection put his 5-month old daughter on an intensive care respirator, he had to fight the health insurance company while their baby fought for her life. Against their doctor's wishes, the insurance company transferred her to another hospital in rush hour traffic, hooked-up to the respirator. Ignoring their doctor again, the insurance company sent her home with a feeding tube. As Insurance Commissioner, De La Torre will make sure what happened to his family won't happen to yours.

As a member of the California Legislature, De La Torre found out insurance companies were taking away coverage after people got sick. Standing up to powerful lobbyists, De La Torre wrote a bill to end that practice and to stop insurers from denying coverage based on pre-existing conditions. He also passed legislation to provide funding for doctors to practice in underserved rural and low-income areas and protect services for MediCal patients. Now he's pushing to make sure that insurance policies are required to cover the maternity services that so many California women and families need.

As Insurance Commissioner, De La Torre will fight to make sure Californians get the insurance coverage we pay for. De La Torre will protect doctor patient relationships--preventing insurance company bureaucrats from making medical decisions + and protect senior citizens from rip-offs by life insurance and annuity companies.

De La Torre has the integrity to take on the special interests and knows firsthand how to take on insurance bureaucrats. As chair of the Assembly Committee on Accountability, De La Torre cracked down on wasteful government spending. In just three months, the committee has identified millions in savings for taxpayers.

De La Torre can stand up for consumers because he refuses to accept contributions from the insurance companies.

De La Torre has the independence and integrity to take on the special interests. As a South Gate city councilmember, including two years as Mayor, De La Torre exposed government corruption and fraud. In the face of pressure from powerful interests and even personal threats, he led the recall of corrupt officials and helped put their leader behind bars.

Before his election to the city council, De La Torre served in the Labor Department in the Clinton Administration, where he worked to ensure greater safety and security for workers. Under Labor Secretary Robert Reich's leadership, De La Torre focused on minimum wage, OSHA enforcement and pension protection, and assisted the Deputy Secretary in managing over 6,000 employees nationwide.

De La Torre was elected to the California Legislature in 2004. His 50th District includes Bell, Bell Gardens, Bellflower, Commerce, Cudahy, Downey, Lynwood, South Gate as well as the unincorporated neighborhoods of Florence-Graham and Walnut Park. De La Torre serves as the Chair of the Assembly Accountability and Administrative Review Committee and serves on the Health and Budget Committees.

De La Torre earned a B.A. from Occidental College. He lives in South Gate with his wife Christine and their three young children who are all attending public schools.