What’s happening: On May 20, CHA staff and hospital leaders convened about 40 legislative staffers for a discussion of policies coming out of Washington, D.C., and Sacramento that seriously threaten access to affordable care.
What else to know: Hospital leaders discussed how pending federal cuts to Medicaid, state cuts to Medi-Cal, and spending caps from the Office of Health Care Affordability (OHCA) spell devastation for patient care.
Carmela Coyle, CHA President & CEO, opened the meeting with a discussion of the multiple policy initiatives and their certain consequences of eliminated services, lost jobs, and full hospital closures. Coyle focused on the $715 billion in federal Medicaid cuts currently moving through Congress.
CHA staff then presented on elements in the governor’s May budget proposal that would pull back more than $1.5 billion of investments, approved by voters in November 2024 under Proposition 35, to improve access to care in the Medi-Cal program.
After also covering concerns with OHCA implementation and asking for legislative oversight and inquiry, a panel of hospital leaders — including President & CEO of Woodland Memorial Hospital Gena Bravo; Interim CEO and Chief Operating Officer of UC Davis Health Michael Condrin; and President & CEO of Barton Health Clint Purvance, MD — shared their challenges and how state and federal policy changes would impact their organizations. CHA is grateful to these leaders for lending their expertise and insights in service of the broader field’s advocacy work.
