By Bo Tefu, California Black Media

California hospitals are facing one of the most precarious periods in decades, Assemblymember Mike Gipson (D-Carson) warned as lawmakers debated Assembly Bill 109, the state’s 2026-27 budget bill.

Included in that bill — and the Senate version of it, Senate Bill (SB) 101— is one-time emergency assistance of $50 million designed to help hospitals in financial distress to stabilize and continue providing care to patients across the state. The bill also allocates an additional $250 million to help California’s 17 public hospital systems cope with mounting losses tied to federal health care cuts.

Speaking on the Assembly floor, Gipson said the legislation is critical to preserving access to health care, particularly for vulnerable communities that depend on public hospitals and Medi-Cal services.

“Our hospitals are entering one of the most dangerous eras that anyone has ever seen, at least in my lifetime,” said Gipson. “Assembly Bill 109 helps preserve access to health care by providing much-needed relief to hospitals across California that are struggling to remain financially viable and to continue to serve their communities.”

Gipson said the financial support to hospitals will help them prepare for future emergencies while protecting access to care.

Drawing on his experience representing South Los Angeles during the COVID-19 pandemic, Gipson described the devastating toll the virus took on his district.

“I’ve seen the coronavirus devastate the Black and Brown communities,” he said. “I’ve seen bodies … piling up in refrigeration systems and delivered in trucks.”

Without the funding, Gipson warned, hospitals would be less prepared to respond to future public health emergencies, increasing the risk of preventable deaths and worsening health outcomes for patients across California.

Gipson, a member of the California Legislative Black Caucus (CLBC), added that the state budget helps prepare counties for potential impacts from HR 1, arguing California must protect vulnerable residents from anticipated federal policy changes.

Gipson pointed to the financial struggles faced by Martin Luther King Jr. Community Hospital, saying he has repeatedly spoken on the Assembly floor over six terms about the importance of preventing hospital closures in his district.

“We cannot afford to let any hospitals close,” Gipson emphasized. “Assembly Bill 109 helps all Californians at all hospitals.”

Following passage of the budget, Gipson said preserving the hospital funding in AB 109 “meant the absolute world to me.”  Assemblymember pushes for funding for hospitals and Medi-Cal in budget bill.

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By Bo Tefu, California Black Media

Congresswoman Sydney Kamlager-Dove (D-CA-37) on May 7, reintroduced updated legislation aimed at strengthening protections and healthcare standards for pregnant and postpartum women held in federal custody, including in immigration detention facilities.

The Pregnant Women in Custody Act would expand safeguards beyond the federal prison system to include women detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, U.S. Customs and Border Protection and the Office of Refugee Resettlement. The proposal follows reports of pregnant women being shackled, denied medical care and suffering miscarriages while in immigration detention.

The legislation builds on a bipartisan version previously passed by the House during the 117th Congress. The updated bill includes new standards for healthcare access, mental health and substance use treatment, high-risk pregnancy care, family unity protections and increased federal oversight.

“Proper pregnancy care is a human right, regardless of your immigration or incarceration status,” Kamlager-Dove said in a statement. “It’s unacceptable that there are virtually no legal safeguards for pregnant women in federal custody.”

The bill would also limit the use of restraints and restrictive housing for pregnant women, improve data collection on maternal health in custody and require additional staff training and enforcement measures.

Supporters of the measure said the legislation is intended to address long-standing concerns about maternal healthcare and safety in detention settings, particularly for Black women and low-income women who are disproportionately impacted by incarceration and health disparities.

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“Pregnant women in custody should never be subjected to dangerous and inhumane treatment that threatens their health, dignity, or the well-being of their babies,” said Patrice Willoughby, chief of policy and legislative affairs for the NAACP and a longtime public policy and government affairs strategist, in a statement.

A 2021 report estimated there are about 58,000 admissions of pregnant women into U.S. jails and prisons each year. Kamlager’s statement also cited a recent investigation by NBC News and Bloomberg Law that identified allegations of severe mistreatment or medical neglect involving at least 54 pregnant women or families in county jails between 2017 and 2024.

Federal policy under the Department of Homeland Security restricts the detention of pregnant, postpartum and nursing immigrants except in extreme cases. However, the agency reported that ICE deported 363 pregnant, postpartum or nursing women between January 2025 and February 2026, including 16 recorded miscarriages during that period.

The bill is cosponsored by several House Democrats and backed by organizations including the NAACP and the Vera Institute of Justice.

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By Antonio Ray Harvey, California Black Media

In July 2024, Adrienne Boulware, a 47-year-old mother and grandmother, died from complications related to extreme heat exhaustion while incarcerated at the Central California Women’s Facility (CCWF) in Chowchilla, according to her family.

Assemblymember Mike Gipson (D-Carson) hopes his legislation, Assembly Bill (AB) 2499 — also known as the “Adrienne Act” — will help prevent tragedies like Boulware’s death in California prisons.

“It is no secret that our state prisons have aging infrastructures that have inadequate ventilation systems,” Gipson said. “It should come as no shock that indoor temperatures in these facilities exceed 90 degrees, which means it gets really hot.”

On May 4, Gipson spoke at the Survivors Speak California Rally at the State Capitol to advocate for AB 2499, which focuses on heat and health protections in state prisons. The three-day event was organized by Californians for Safety and Justice, a project of the Crime Survivors for Safety and Justice network.

Boulware’s family attended the rally in support of the measure, which would require the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) to establish a pilot program to address extreme heat by July 1, 2027, in at least three prisons across different climate zones.

Boulware’s daughter, Michela Nelson, said her mother frequently complained about heatwaves during the summer months. CDCR stated that Boulware’s death — she was also known as “Twin” — appeared to be related to pre-existing medical conditions rather than extreme heat.

“My mother was not just a mother of four and grandmother of 12. She was a mother to many inside and outside of the prison,” said Nelson, the eldest of Boulware’s children. “My mother didn’t die because she was sentenced to death. She died because she was left in conditions no human being should ever endure.”

AB 2499 would formally create the Climate Justice in Prisons Emergency Response Act. The legislation would require CDCR to develop a long-term plan to install heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) systems and shade structures in existing facilities.

The Survivors Speak California Rally coincided with other advocacy events at the Capitol supporting survivors of violent crime.

On May 5, Jazz LedBetter and other advocates rallied nearby to urge lawmakers to include $100 million in the state budget for domestic violence and sexual assault services.

Assemblymember Pilar Schiavo (D-Chatsworth) and Sen. Susan Rubio (D-Baldwin Park) served as keynote speakers. Both lawmakers have publicly shared their own experiences as survivors of assault.

LedBetter, a survivor of human trafficking, is also an author, activist, and artist who uses her experiences to advocate for human trafficking prevention. She shares her story of survival, addiction, and recovery in her self-published book, “Harlot Heart: Tributes To Triumph.”

“Take a moment and think about someone finally reaching out for help, and there’s no one here to answer,” LedBetter said during her presentation on the east lawn of the Capitol.

Advocates said the funding is needed to help close a gap caused by a sharp decline in federal Victims of Crime Act (VOCA) funding.

“I am here because I am proof of what happens when someone gets support. Don’t let this funding (shortfall) be the reason someone doesn’t make it out,” LedBetter said. “The difference between survival and unfortunately common sad stories is whether or not someone is there (to help) when it matters the most.”

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