What’s happening: CHA DataSuite has issued a hospital-specific analysis for the third quarter 2025 Care Compare data update of the quality program trends.
(more…)DataSuite Analysis Releases Quality Program Measure Trends
Commission Examines System-Level Challenges During First Meeting
What’s happening: The Future of Medi-Cal Commission meeting on Jan. 22 brought commissioners together for the first time, giving the group an opportunity to introduce themselves and start tackling the challenges facing Medi-Cal.
(more…)Hospital Quality Leaders Invited to Cal HQ’s Kickoff Event
What’s happening: Cal HQ — a statewide, cross-industry collaborative working to improve hospital quality through aligned action — will host an in-person kickoff meeting for hospital quality leaders on April 14 in Long Beach and April 30 in Sacramento (from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. on both dates).
(more…)New CHA Infographic Available on 340B Drug Pricing Program
What’s happening: CHA’s new infographic illustrates how the 340B program works, highlights its benefits to patients and communities in reducing drug costs and expanding access to care, details who is eligible to participate, and sets the record straight on program oversight and compliance.
(more…)Infographic: 340B Fact Sheet
Following State Bill Intro Deadline, Focus Remains on Financial Instability
Last Friday marked the deadline to introduce bills for the 2026 state legislative session. While the focus for this year will be on CHA’s two sponsored bills, there are several concerning pieces of legislation that will demand intensive engagement. (All told, about 1,800 bills have been introduced this year.)
(more…)CHA Hosts Legislative Briefing on AI in Health Care
What’s happening: On Feb. 24, CHA held a virtual briefing to educate legislative staff about artificial intelligence (AI) in health care — including its use, governance, and opportunities in California’s health care delivery system.
What else to know: More than 50 legislative staff, including staff from the Assembly and Senate Health Committees and the Assembly Committee on Privacy and Consumer Protection, heard from three CHA member panelists:
- Matt Eisenberg, MD, associate chief medical information officer, Stanford Health Care
- Kristine Lee, MD, associate executive director, The Permanente Medical Group
- Shane Thielman, corporate senior vice president, chief information & digital officer, Scripps Health
The briefing was interactive with panelists sharing their experiences and perspectives. Attendees heard about how hospitals are using AI to improve care, reduce clinician burnout, enhance patient safety, and identify hospitalized patients at risk of deterioration. All three organizations stressed that AI is assistive, not a replacement for clinicians. Providers must ask patients for consent, review and edit AI-generated notes, remain accountable for final decisions, and rely on strong cybersecurity and HIPAA-aligned safeguards for protected health information (PHI).
Other key takeaways:
- Governance is central: hospital systems use multidisciplinary committees, standardized assessments, and AI registries, and cease using underperforming or unsafe models.
- Models are piloted and tested before being deployed in the clinical setting for all patients.
- Continuous monitoring — both quantitative (performance metrics) and qualitative (clinician feedback) — is essential to detect model drift, usability issues, and unintended consequences.
- Workforce training on AI tools, ethics, PHI protection, and limitations is recurring and seen as critical to building trust and “future-ready” skills.
- All panelists emphasized a “human-in-the-loop” approach, preserving clinician autonomy and judgment while using AI as augmented intelligence to support access, quality, and safety.
CHA Symposium to Address Critical Issues Facing Rural Hospitals — Register Today
What’s happening: There is still time to register for CHA’s annual Rural Health Care Symposium on March 23-24 at the Kimpton Sawyer in Sacramento. Speakers will explore challenges faced by rural hospitals, and attendees will leave with valuable insights on a range of critical health care topics.
(more…)Register for Webinars on IRF Review Choice Demonstration
What’s happening: Noridian will host three webinars for inpatient rehabilitation facilities (IRF) ahead of the May 1 implementation of the IRF Review Choice Demonstration.
(more…)Organ and Tissue Donor Registration Now Inside Epic’s MyChart
What’s happening: Donate Life America and Epic have integrated organ, eye, and tissue donor registration directly into the Epic MyChart portal, allowing adult patients to securely record their donation decision.
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