Healthcare leaders in Los Angeles are bracing themselves for the expected impacts of federal cuts to healthcare funding, which will greatly diminish access to medical care, especially among vulnerable populations.
Healthcare officials have partnered with community leaders to create Restore Healthcare for Angelenos, an LA coalition representing 80 organizations and over 100,000 healthcare workers. The coalition is dedicated to securing funding to help ensure continued access to healthcare services for an estimated 3.3 million Angelenos who are currently Medi-Cal recipients.
Due to federal funding cuts to Medicaid from the passage of H.R. 1 and statewide funding deficits, nearly half of Medi-Cal patients in LA County are at risk of losing their coverage as the expected impacts of the reduced funding start to take hold, according to Louise McCarthy, MPP, president and CEO of the Community Clinic Association of Los Angeles County (CCALAC).
McCarthy, a coalition member, said they are urging the LA County Board of Supervisors (BOS) to place a funding measure on the June ballot that would allocate resources for healthcare. If passed, the measure would levy a temporary (through 2032) half-cent sales tax for LA County, which could raise $960 million per year to help fund indigent care programs via community health centers.
“Healthcare in LA is under immediate threat; the consequences will be felt by millions of people if we do not act,” said McCarthy. “One in five people in LA County depend on community health centers for their care. … For millions of Angelenos, these clinics are often the only door to health care. Right now, that door is at risk of closing because of the federal funding cuts.
“When clinics close, emergency rooms become overcrowded,” she added. “Wait times grow longer, costs rise, people get sicker and too often people die. The ballot measure we’re proposing is an urgent and necessary step to stop the damage, to protect access to life-saving care.”
Anita Zamora, RN, president and CEO of Valley Community Healthcare (VCH), expressed similar concerns.
“When people lose health coverage, they don’t stop needing care; they just put it off or end up in the emergency room, which adds strain to hospitals and community health centers,” said Zamora. “At VCH, we see the effects of these policy shifts every day.”
That’s why Zamora supports the coalition’s efforts to seek the funding necessary “to help close these growing gaps” and help ensure continued access to health care for millions, she explained.
“Health coverage is so important in keeping clinics and hospitals running,” continued Zamora, “and when coverage is weakened, the health system that our communities rely on is at risk.”