WILL Prop 44 IMPROVE PATIENT CARE?
- No. Prop 44 is a major threat to nearly 7 million patients who rely on community health clinics for their care.
- Healthcare economists warn 44 will cut $1.7 billion from community health clinics in the first year alone and billions thereafter. As a result, 88% of clinics across the state would operate at a loss.
- Prop 44 will shut down hundreds of community health clinics throughout the state and force major cuts to patient services, jeopardizing access to care for millions of patients.
WHAT PATIENT SERVICES ARE AT RISK UNDER PROP 44
- Prop 44 will shut down hundreds of clinics and force clinics to eliminate vital patient services.
- What’s more, Prop 44 has major legal flaws that financially penalize clinics if they spend resources on important staff and patient services.
- As a result, Prop 44 will force clinics to cut:
Clinic Staffing:
- Nursing Managers
- Chief Medical Officers and Physician Leaders
- Healthcare Enrollment Navigators
- Appointment Referral Coordinators
- Billing & Accountants
- Janitorial & Maintenance
- Human Resources
- Recruitment & Workforce Development
PROGRAMS & SERVICES:
- Telemedicine
- Quality Care Improvement Programs
- Staff Training and Development
- Translation Services
- Patient Medical Records
- Appointment Support Services
- Transportation Services
MEDICAL TECHNOLOGIES & INFRASTRUCTURE:
- Mammograms, CT and X-Ray Machines
- Building New Clinics and Expanding Clinic Sites
- Rent & Lease of Buildings
- Utilities
- Fire & Earthquake Insurance
WHY WAS Prop 44 FILED?
- Proposition 44 is backed by a special interest labor union that is using the ballot initiative process to advance its political agenda.
- This same union has spent more than $200 million pushing dozens of harmful ballot measures against hospitals, clinics and physician groups, including the three unsuccessful dialysis propositions that voters overwhelmingly rejected every time.
- Workers have a right to decide whether to join a union. But using the ballot initiative process to advance a political agenda at the expense of patients and community health clinics is wrong. Patients should never be used as pawns.
WILL Prop 44 STRENGTHEN OVERSIGHT AND ACCOUNTABILITY OVER COMMUNITY HEALTH CENTERS AND CLINICS?
- No. Prop 44 is unnecessary. Community clinics are heavily regulated by the federal and state governments with mandatory spending requirements, public audits and reporting of clinic spending.
- Prop 44 puts the State Attorney General in charge of decisions about the services health clinics can provide. The last thing we need is politicians to interfere in decisions that should be between patients and their doctors and nurses.
DO COMMUNITY HEALTH CLINICS SPEND TOO MUCH ON MANAGEMENT OR EXECUTIVES?
- Community clinics are all not-for-profit organizations, led by a board that includes patients, requiring funds to be spent on patient care and community benefits.
- Community clinics provide compensation for management and executives the same way they set compensation for providers and all employees, they pay competitive wages and benefits that allow them to recruit and retain the most qualified caregivers and leaders.
WHO OPPOSES PROP 44?
- California School Nurses Organization
- Planned Parenthood Affiliates of CA
- California Academy of Family Physicians
- American College of Obstetricians & Gynecologists District IX
- California Medical Association
- California Primary Care Association Advocates
- California Hospital Association
- California Children’s Hospital Association
- California Behavioral Health Association
- California Black Health Network
- American College of Emergency Physicians, California
- California Teachers Association