What’s happening: The Department of Health Care Services (DHCS) will submit the Hospital Quality Assurance Fee (HQAF) program 9 to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid no later than March 31. Once submitted, CHA will share a draft model for member hospitals to review that will include internal calculations to assist in their review.
What else to know: Shortly after the approved model is released, CHA will host a webinar to provide historical HQAF program context and share the changes specific to program 9. CHA News will share updates and information on program 9’s status, as well as related educational opportunities, as they become available.
Patient Safety Awareness Week: Renewing Commitment to Quality Care
What’s happening: This year’s National Patient Safety Awareness Week, which runs from March 9-15, is themed “Moving the Needle,” focusing on the importance of taking action to enhance safety for both patients and the teams that care for them.
What else to know: National Patient Safety Awareness Week is an opportunity for hospitals and health systems to renew their commitment to providing the highest quality and safest patient care.
HCAI Notice Details Information on AB 869 Seismic Compliance Delay Provisions
What’s happening: Assembly Bill (AB) 869 (2024) authorizes the Department of Health Care Access and Information (HCAI) to grant eligible general acute care hospitals a delay of up to three years beyond the Jan. 1, 2030, deadline for the seismic compliance of hospital buildings, provided that specified criteria are met.
What else to know:Policy Intent Notice (PIN) 80 outlines HCAI’s policy for implementing AB 869’s seismic compliance provisions. Hospitals requesting a delay must submit their seismic compliance plan by Jan. 1, 2026.
HCAI Hosts Upcoming Webinar on Seismic Nonstructural Performance Category Requirements
What’s happening: On March 18, the Department of Health Care Access and Information (HCAI) is conducting a free webinar on seismic nonstructural performance category (NPC) requirements.
What’s happening: The American Hospital Association (AHA) is asking hospitals to complete the AHA Annual Survey, which will help health care leaders, policymakers, and researchers describe and understand hospital operations.
What else to know: Last year, only 60.7% of California’s hospitals completed this survey. It is crucial that this year, information from all California hospitals is included in this critical national data set, as California has the second largest number of hospitals in the country — along with high labor costs, added regulations, seismic standards, and more. The deadline for completing the survey is May 5.
CHA Argues OHCA’s Proposed Hospital Sector ‘Strains Credibility,’ Encourages Hospitals to Weigh In
What’s happening: On March 6, CHA sent a letter to the Office of Health Care Affordability (OHCA) calling attention to the office’s flawed, prejudicial approach to creating a hospital sector.
What else to know: Over the coming weeks, hospitals must engage at every opportunity to ensure the OHCA board understands the devastating impact its actions will have on patient care. See CHA’s March 13 alert for details.
What’s happening: On March 7, CHA submitted comments on proposed modifications to the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) security rule.
What else to know: CHA urged the Office of Civil Rights to rescind the proposed rule and instead focus policymaking on coordinated federal efforts to prevent and deter cyberattacks in the broader health care sector.
What’s happening: The California Department of Public Health (CDPH) Center for Health Care Quality (CHCQ) is seeking public comment from long-term care facilities, including skilled-nursing facilities, on regulations for reporting unusual occurrences. For more information, refer to All Facilities Letter 25-11.
What else to know: CHCQ seeks input on several topics, including definitions, reporting processes, and requirements for documentation. Comments are due by April 7 and can be submitted to the CHCQ Regulation Development Section at CHCQRegulations@cdph.ca.gov
Registration is currently closed. Please join us for next month’s Mid-Day Meet-Up.
Contact CAHHS Volunteer Services at (916) 552-7544 or email volunteers@calhospital.org with questions or additional assistance.
Issue Brief: Protecting Maternity Services in California
Protecting Maternity Services in California Requires Tailored, Community-Centric Approaches That Put Patients First
The Issue
When a hospital L&D unit closes, patients experience worse health outcomes: In areas without an L&D unit, an expectant mother traveling as few as 6 additional miles faces an 11% increase in the risk of having a negative outcome, such as a ruptured uterus or unplanned hysterectomy, and a 15% greater likelihood that her baby will be admitted to the neonatal intensive care unit. The risk increases the farther a patient must travel.
Drivers of L&D unit closures are intertwined: A declining birth rate creates low birth volume at hospitals; this creates concern among obstetrician-gynecologists (OB/GYN) and other specialists around maintaining the clinical skill level required to handle emergency situations. This, in turn, generates physician and health care workforce shortages. Throughout, financial troubles persist: Of the hospitals that closed their maternity wards in the past 10 years, 60% cited negative operating margins in the year before closure. With Medicaid (Medi-Cal) already not covering the cost of care and the potential for further federal Medicaid cuts looming, L&D units’ viability and stability is even more tenuous.
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) recommends one OB/GYN or certified nurse midwife per 1,500 females aged 15-44, but eight California counties have no licensed OB/GYNs, and 11 other counties have only a handful. The poorest regions in California have the fewest providers.
What’s Needed
Maintaining equitable access to L&D care in California requires approaches that address the three primary challenges in delivering these services: low birth volume, a workforce shortage, and financial instability. While each community is unique and requires a resolution tailored to its needs, all potential approaches must prioritize mothers’ and babies’ safety and high-quality care. To begin charting a path forward, lawmakers should:
Study the current and projected need for maternity care services, accounting for the continued decline in California’s birth rate and addressing the needs of those who face access challenges.
Consider implementing incentives that encourage OB/GYNs to practice in low-income regions, where the need is most acute. Consider training programs that allow OB/GYNs at low-volume hospitals to spend time offsite at high-volume facilities to maintain their skills. Increase support for programs like CalMedForce, which increases residency training slots for OB/GYNs in rural and underserved areas. Consider what is required to meet HHS’ recommended ratio and how to help communities meet this ratio.
Given that Medi-Cal covers 40% of births in California, examine improved Medi-Cal reimbursement for L&D services. Also examine the extent to which bolstering hospitals’ overall financial sustainability could support L&D service lines. ating timely medical access standards for L&D services and acute behavioral health care, whether for inpatient or outpatient services, is critical to reduce the risks of adverse outcomes for expectant mothers and their babies, and to ensure that behavioral health patients receive the care they need in a timely manner.
