Urge Legislature to Increase Funding for Equitable Care, Invest in Health Care Workforce

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Action needed: 

Meet with or write to your state senator and ask them to support, if amended, Senate Bill (SB) 1339 (Pan, D-Sacramento) on the Senate floor. SB 1339 identifies some key considerations that could advance and enhance the policy discussion on updating the 2030 hospital seismic requirements. However, California can’t wait for the bill’s report to be completed in 2024 — a resolution must be reached sooner, or communities throughout the state will begin to see unnecessary negative impacts. CHA requests amendments to the bill that include a policy solution for the looming 2030 building standards mandate. CHA has developed a template letter for your use; please use this opportunity to tell your senator how these outdated requirements will affect your hospital and why they must be updated. Find contact information for your senator on the state Legislature’s site. Please send your letters to Emily Schroeder at eschroeder@calhospital.org.  

Timing:

Please send your letters by May 20.

Resources:

Background:

Background:

  • Increasing Health Equity in Medi-Cal: Medi-Cal provides health coverage to low-income Californians — one-third of the entire state and nearly half of all children — and those who rely on Medi-Cal coverage are disproportionately people of color (two-thirds are non-white). But those who care for Medi-Cal patients are reimbursed just 74 cents for every dollar they spend providing care, resulting in fewer resources for California’s most vulnerable communities. CHA’s proposal would unfreeze Medi-Cal APR-DRG rates from 2012-13 levels; create new, annual payment adjustments to account for patients’ social and environmental challenges; and convert public hospitals’ Medi-Cal fee-for-service inpatient reimbursement to a value-based structure that includes state General Fund support. 
  • Expanding Medi-Cal GME: Because it is vital to the health of Californians to further fund programs that train doctors across the state, CHA’s proposal would expand the Medi-Cal GME program to include private and district hospitals and commit state General Fund dollars to support these programs. 
  • Supporting the Health Care Workforce: After nearly two years of fighting the pandemic, California’s hospitals are facing persistent staffing challenges. The governor has included almost $2 billion in workforce training and supports for health care providers to recruit and retain workers across hospital and health care settings.