‘Big Beautiful Bill’ will devastate access to care, CMA warns

Despite strong and sustained opposition from the California Medical Association (CMA), the medical community, and patient advocates, Congress passed HR 1, the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act.” Signed into law on July 4, 2025, the bill enacts more than $1 trillion in federal health care cuts and jeopardizes coverage for millions of Californians. “This law will do irreparable harm to the health of our nation,” said CMA President Shannon Udovic-Constant, M.D., in a statement following final passage. “It strips coverage from millions, guts provider funding, and makes it harder for patients to access care – particularly in our most vulnerable communities.” More...

U.S. Supreme Court preserves ACA’s no-cost preventive care – at least for now

The U.S. Supreme Court has affirmed the constitutionality of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) requirement that most health insurance plans cover preventive services at no cost to patients, preserving a key component of the law while broader legal challenges continue.

The case, Braidwood Management Inc. v. Becerra, questioned the legal authority of the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF), whose recommendations guide the ACA’s no-cost coverage requirements. In a 6 - 3 decision, the justices declined to reinstate a lower court ruling that would have ended coverage for certain services – avoiding widespread disruption, at least for now. More...

Physicians and organizations honored for advancing health equity at Health Equity Leadership Summit

More than 150 health care leaders, physicians, and advocates are gathering in Pasadena this week for the third annual Physicians for a Healthy California (PHC) Health Equity Leadership Summit. The event provides a space for in-depth dialogue, hands-on trainings, and collaborative workshops focused on advancing health equity across California.

During the summit, PHC is recognizing seven individuals and organizations whose work exemplifies leadership, innovation, and an unwavering commitment to reducing health disparities and advancing equitable care in California. More...

Risking it All for Beauty-What Doctors Must Knoe Before Opening a MedSpa

Beauty and wellness appear synonymous in American culture, as if one could not exist without the other. As consumers continue to strongly pursue health and beauty, the field of medical aesthetics has exploded and continues to grow. In fact, the Medical Spa (MedSpa) market size alone reached $18 billion in 2023, with a projected Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 18.7% through 2032. California leads the nation with the highest concentration of MedSpa businesses.¹ As the industry grows, opening a MedSpa or serving as the Medical Director of a MedSpa would appear to be a lucrative endeavor for a physician and an easy way to enhance income, especially as the challenges of traditional healthcare models continue to increase.  More...

CMA-sponsored bills addressing private equity influence on medicine, AI chatbots advance

Two bills sponsored by the California Medical Association (CMA) that would safeguard patients and preserve physician-led care are making progress in the California Legislature, recently clearing committee hearings in their second house.



Senate Bill 351 by Senator Christopher Cabaldon would bolster California’s ban on the corporate practice of medicine by granting the Attorney General an enforcement tool to investigate and bring action against private equity groups that unlawfully influence the practice of medicine. More...

California Physicians: Congress Is Doing Irreparable Harm to the Health of our Nation

SACRAMENTO, CA – Despite millions of text messages sent by health care providers across the nation, tens of thousands of calls and emails to Members of Congress, and pleas from Democrats and Republicans alike to stop Medicaid cuts, the U.S. House of Representatives took action today that will decimate care for millions across the country. California Medical Association (CMA) President and pediatrician Shannon Udovic-Constant, M.D., issued the following statement on behalf of the more than 50,000 physicians CMA represents. More...

Action must follow pledges on prior authorization reform



The recent commitment by the nation’s largest health insurers to cut red tape and accelerate care decisions by implementing long-overdue reforms to the prior authorization process is welcome news. What is most needed now, however, is solid evidence that payers will do what they’ve promised—along with a method to hold them accountable—to fix this overused cost-control measure that endangers patients, wastes resources and undermines the expertise of physicians. If this latest pledge sounds familiar, it should. In 2018 and again in 2023, major health insurers outlined a structural overhaul of prior authorization to ensure safe, timely and affordable access to evidence-based care for patients, cut the administrative burden placed on physicians, and bring much-needed transparency to the process. More...

How to help senior residents pick their practice setting

As all-consuming as residency training can be at times, fundamental decisions about where and how to practice after residency greatly influence a physician’s satisfaction with medicine as a career. A learning module for residents provides the keys to assess, decide and seamlessly transition to the right practice setting when training ends. 

The choice of private practice or other workplace options should be guided foremost by a physician’s values and goals. The module makes it possible for residents to consider those critical factors in the context of a frank, well-informed discussion of the realities of medical practice in a variety of settings. It examines the pros, cons and trade-offs of all the main practice choices. More...

Looking for Upcoming Events & Webinars

Due to the number of upcoming events & webinars available, we send information for them in a separate email. See our last email:

Upcoming Events & Webinars