CHA President/CEO C. Duane Dauner was joined by 10 representatives of CHA member hospitals in Washington, D.C., Dec. 3 for the CHA and American Hospital Association hospital advocacy day. The group met with about half of the California Congressional delegation, including House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, House Majority Whip Kevin McCarthy, and Sens. Boxer and Feinstein.The meetings came at a critical time in the budget negotiations between the House and Senate, with the Dec. 13 deadline for a conference committee deal looming. CHA members urged their representatives not to cut payments to hospitals to pay for a budget deal or fix the flawed sustainable growth rate for physician payments. Hospital leaders also urged their representatives to support several pieces of legislation, including the Recovery Audit Contractor program (H.R. 1250) and the DSH Reduction Relief Act of 2013 (H.R. 1920).