Last week, the California Senate and Assembly took action on several bills of importance to hospitals — moving or holding critical pieces of legislation. It is the midpoint of the 2024 legislative session when bills must move to the second house according to legislative deadlines.
Among the bills of greatest importance to hospitals is CHA’s sponsored bill (Senate Bill (SB) 1432) that provides an extension to the 2030 seismic construction mandate. After clearing the Senate with an incredibly strong 37-0 vote, the bill now heads to the Assembly for more debate, negotiations, and discussion.
Many thanks to all of the hospitals and health systems that lent their voice in support of this effort. See CHA’s latest letter here with logos from dozens of hospitals and health systems.
Also, CHA’s bill to provide additional funding to critical access hospitals that are in financial distress made it out of the Senate but will be challenged in the Assembly due to the multibillion dollar state budget deficit. An associated budget request proposal in the Senate Budget Subcommittee on Health and Human Services also faces barriers due to the deficit.
Whether a bill makes it out of each house is an important step and helps narrow the focus for the second half of 2024. In addition to our two top legislative priorities — seismic and funding for critical access hospitals — below is a roundup of bills we have been working to advance or defeat.
First, the good news — bills that hospitals support that are headed to the next house and bills that hospitals oppose that were left behind:
- Passed – Community College Baccalaureate Degree in Nursing Pilot Program (SB 895)
- Passed – Community College Baccalaureate Degree in Nursing Pilot Program (Assembly Bill (AB) 2104)
- Passed – Health Plan Reimbursements (AB 3275)
- Held – Single Payer (AB 2200)
- Held – Sexually Transmitted Disease Testing in Clinics and Emergency Departments (AB 2960)
- Held – Hospital Specialties Database (AB 2175)
Second, the not-so-great news: bills that hospitals support that failed to advance and those that hospitals oppose that have moved forward:
- Passed – Medical Debt (SB 1061)
- Passed – Maternity Ward Closure Notifications (AB 1895)
- Passed – Metal Detectors (AB 2975)
- Passed – Private Equity (AB 3129)
- Held – Emergency Medical Services Alternate Destinations (AB 2700)
On all of these bills, advocacy will ramp up in the coming weeks as the calendar moves toward the end of the legislative session on Aug. 31.
That will be the period when your voices are needed even more. Momentum must be built to carry forward bills that help hospitals deliver care, and volume in opposition of those that are detrimental to patient care must grow.
Thank you, as always, for being part of our work together to help California’s hospitals help people.
