Following Gov. Newsom’s signing of a bill (AB 3242) on Friday that improves access to behavioral health care, the California Hospital Association and the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) California have issued the following statements:
Hospitals Provide Update on Resurgence Planning as COVID-19 Infection Rates Continue to Rise
WHEN: Wednesday, July 22, 2020, 10 a.m.
WHERE: Operator-Assisted Audio Press Conference
Dial-in: (855) 920-2730
Conference Call: 73026#
**CREDENTIALED MEDIA ONLY
WHAT: Carmela Coyle, President & CEO of the California Hospital Association, will discuss hospital capacity (including staffing, PPE availability and more) as California hospitals respond to the surge in COVID-19 positive patients.
WHO: Carmela Coyle, President & CEO, California Hospital Association
WHY: As COVID-19 cases continue to rise throughout California, hospitals remain on the front lines in caring for their communities. As hospitals respond to the surge in patients, it is critical that all stakeholders have a shared understanding of capacity, the challenges facing hospitals, and what these mean for fighting the trends that lie ahead.
California Hospital Association Mourns Passing of Former CEO C. Duane Dauner
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: July 14, 2020
“California’s hospitals have lost a true champion with the tragic and untimely passing of C. Duane Dauner,” said CHA President & CEO Carmela Coyle. “For more than three decades, Duane steered California’s hospitals through some of the most pivotal moments in our state’s health care evolution.”
State Budget Deal Spares Some Payment Cuts to Medi-Cal Providers, But Lacks Financial Lifeline Needed by Hospitals
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: June 22, 2020
Independent Report Finds CA Hospital Losses From COVID-19 Could Lead to Long-Term Changes, Service Reductions
Immediate economic relief is needed for financially challenged hospitals
SACRAMENTO (June 5, 2020) – A new report from Kaufman Hall, a nationally renowned independent consulting firm with extensive health care finance expertise, has found that the COVID-19 pandemic is likely to lead to long-term changes to financial stability and care delivery in California hospitals, many of which were already operating with negative margins. This report, which was commissioned by the California Hospital Association, comes on the heels of one released on Wednesday by the independent California Health Care Foundation, which also foretells long-term economic damage on California hospitals.
“Since the outset of the pandemic, California hospitals have rightfully focused their efforts on caring for COVID-19 patients, protecting their workers, and preserving the safety of their communities,” said Ken Kaufman, chair of Kaufman Hall. “Our research shows that these vital efforts have come at an extremely high cost. When coupled with an already challenging financial environment prior to COVID-19, California hospitals are now facing a very difficult path forward.”
CHCF Report Confirms California Hospitals Experiencing Substantial “Financial Shock” Due to COVID-19 Response
“Since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, California’s hospitals answered the call to respond to this unprecedented crisis — incurring enormous, unplanned expenses for staffing, equipment, and supplies while simultaneously cancelling non-emergency and elective procedures,” said Carmela Coyle, President & CEO of the California Hospital Association. “These actions have resulted in more than $10 billion in short-term losses, a figure confirmed by the California Health Care Foundation, yet hospitals took the actions willingly because it was the right thing to do. CHCF’s new, independent, study confirms the depth of the other crisis we are now facing – a ‘financial shock’ to hospitals so severe that it will impede hospitals’ ability to keep staff, prepare for a COVID resurgence, and care for their communities.”
“For the past several weeks, hospital leaders up and down the state have been sounding the alarm about the devastating fiscal crisis they now face as a result of responding to the pandemic,” Coyle said. “The CHCF report lays out in stark terms just how acute these challenges are – and will continue to be — for the foreseeable future.”
“Hospitals are essential to California’s economic recovery. Schools and business cannot reopen, government services cannot operate, and people cannot return to work unless hospitals are open, staffed, and ready to care for those in need,” Coyle added. “In this moment, we renew our call for our state’s elected officials to stand up for hospitals — just as hospitals have stood up for all 40 million Californians. We urge legislators and Governor Newsom to prioritize California’s hospitals in the state’s budget negotiations by allocating $1 billion in financial relief by June 30.”
Layoffs, Furloughs, Pay Cuts Spike as Hospitals Report Record Losses from COVID-19 Crisis – $1 Billion Financial Lifeline Needed Now
WHEN: Friday, May 22, 2020
9:30 a.m. – Point-in-time hospital workforce impact information released to media
10:00 a.m. – Teleconference
WHERE: Operator-Assisted Conference Call
Dial-in: 1-800-357-0498
Conference ID: 34752
*CREDENTIALED MEDIA ONLY
WHAT: Point-in-time data on the impact that the pandemic is having on various hospitals throughout the state will be released — with information on layoffs, furloughs, pay cuts, and other COVID-19-related consequences — illustrating the devastating impact of this unprecedented crisis on California’s hospital workforce.
WHO: Carmela Coyle, President & CEO, California Hospital Association
WHY: As California’s Legislature heads into the Memorial Day weekend, some of the most important state budget decisions in years will be on the table. While lawmakers debate the state’s fiscal priorities, mounting financial losses driven by the COVID-19 pandemic are already leading to widespread layoffs, furloughs, and salary cuts.
May Budget Revision Excludes Critical Funding to Help Hospitals Keep Ready
Hospitals Are Foundational to Reopening of California’s Economy
“There is no question California is facing one of the most challenging budget years this state has ever seen — far worse than the Great Recession of 2009,” said Carmela Coyle, President & CEO of the California Hospital Association. “As the budget is a reflection of the state’s values and priorities — even during devastating economic times when the state is working hard to return many sectors of our economy to more normal activity — it’s vital that hospitals be able to remain open, staffed, and ready for the state’s ongoing COVID-19 response.”
“While California’s hospitals recognize the difficult choices facing state leaders, hospital funds referenced in the May Revise are federal dollars, not state, and even still don’t come close to the $10 billion to $14 billion in short-term losses that hospitals are facing today,” Coyle said. “Hospitals across this state answered the call to respond in this unprecedented crisis. Without an immediate infusion of resources, many will remain in serious financial jeopardy.”
“We agree with the Governor that our state’s economy cannot begin to climb back unless hospitals are open, available, and fully staffed to provide care for the next expected wave of patients suffering from COVID-19. This cannot happen without immediate financial help from the state,” Coyle said. “We call upon the Legislature and Governor to prioritize the health of all Californians by providing $1 billion in financial relief to hospitals before June 30.”
California Hospital Leaders Sound Alarm: Immediate Financial Relief Needed to Keep Hospitals Open, Caring for People
WHEN: Thursday, May 7, 2020, 11 a.m.
WHERE: For Dial-In Information, Email: CHABriefing@randlecommunications.com – CREDENTIALED MEDIA ONLY
WHAT: COVID-19’s Devastating Financial Impact on California’s Hospitals
Health Care Provider Loan Program Provides a Much-Needed Cash Injection Ahead of Projected COVID-19 Surge
Funds Can Help Sustain Hospital Operations in Coming Weeks
“We are grateful that Blue Shield of California has stepped up to offer up to $200 million in short-term loans to help offset some of the heavy losses hospitals and doctors are enduring as they suspend normal operations before the expected surge of COVID-19 patients,” said Carmela Coyle, President & CEO of the California Hospital Association.
“Right now, hospitals are focused on one thing: caring for patients during this crisis,” Coyle said. “From a financial perspective, however, the immediate fiscal stress hospitals are facing pales in comparison to the long-term devastation that COVID-19 will wreak on California’s health care system as more and more hospitals are driven into the red financially.”
