This post has been archived and contains information that may be out of date.
At its Oct. 15 meeting, the CHA Board of Trustees discussed the upcoming federal election, current ballot initiatives, results of the 2020 legislative session, policy needs related to COVID-19, and advocacy priorities for the coming year, including:
- COVID-19, where conversation focused on developing a coordinated response, vaccine deployment, and potential mandates for health care workers
- The Affordable Care Act, which could be diluted or negated by a Supreme Court decision in mid-2021
- Health equity, where hospitals must act to begin to address injustices, including those wrought by the COVID-19 pandemic
- Telehealth, including the maintenance of payment parity and a mechanism to improve access to Californians
- The state ban on the corporate practice of medicine, on which CHA will continue its policy development work in 2021
Other potential priorities are:
- State budget: A deficit is anticipated in the 2021-22 budget year, which could entail reductions in various Medi-Cal programs. CHA will work to protect hospitals from cuts.
- Hospital seismic mandate: CHA will reintroduce legislation to address the 2030 hospital seismic requirements.
- Affordability: The Legislature and stakeholders will continue to seek legislation to address health care costs and affordability.
In addition, the board elected a slate of new members including new officers. For 2021, the officers will be:
- Scott Reiner (chair), CEO, Adventist Health, Roseville
- Sarah Krevans (chair elect), Sutter Health, Sacramento
- Gary Wilde (immediate past chair), President/CEO, Community Memorial Health System, Ventura
- Todd Suntrapak, (secretary/treasurer), President/CEO, Valley Children’s Healthcare, Madera
The new board members are:
- Joe Avelino (Hospital Association of Southern California chair elect), CEO, College Medical Center Long Beach, Los Angeles
- Elaine Batchlor, MD (Hospital Association of Southern California trustee), CEO, Martin Luther King, Jr. Community Hospital, Los Angeles
- Kavitha Reddy Bhatia, MD, board chair, Prime Healthcare Foundation and CMO of Strategy, Prime Healthcare, Ontario
- Carolyn Caldwell, CEO, St. Mary Medical Center, Long Beach
- Susan Ehrlich, CEO, Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital and Trauma Center, San Francisco
- Tom Gammiere (Hospital Association of San Diego & Imperial Counties chair elect), Corporate SVP/Regional Chief Executive, South, Scripps Health, San Diego
- Mary Jo Jacobson, PT (Hospital Council–Northern & Central California chair elect), CEO, San Joaquin Valley Rehabilitation Hospital, Fresno
- Siri Nelson (Hospital Council–Northern & Central California trustee), CEO, Marshall Medical Center, Placerville
- Paul Viviano, President/CEO, Children’s Hospital Los Angeles
- Louis Ward, CEO, Mayers Memorial Hospital District, Fall River Mills
