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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