CMA condemns Governor’s plan to divert voter-approved health care funds

What You Need to Know: Governor Newsom’s revised budget proposal diverts funding from voter-approved Prop 35 and Prop 56 health care funds to backfill the state’s deficit, violating voter intent and threatening access to care for millions of Medi-Cal patients. CMA is urging legislators to reject the proposal.

The California Medical Association (CMA) is calling on state lawmakers to reject Governor Gavin Newsom’s proposal to divert billions in voter-approved health care funds from Propositions 35 and 56. The proposal will devastate access to care for Medi-Cal patients and betrays the trust of California voters. The Governor’s revised budget proposal diverts significant funding from Prop 35 to backfill the state’s budget shortfall instead of to increase provider rates, as the proposition requires. More...

Physicians still facing timely filing denials following Change Healthcare cyberattack

More than a year after the massive cyberattack on Change Healthcare, a subsidiary UnitedHealth Group’s Optum unit, many physician practices are still grappling with the fallout. Though UnitedHealth Group reported that claims began flowing again in late March 2024, serious disruptions persisted into late 2024, putting significant financial strain on some physician practices. More...

Help Protect Medicaid – Join Our National Texting Campaign Today!

Medicaid is under threat. Physicians can help protect it – one text at a time.

Congress is threatening deep cuts to Medicaid – jeopardizing care for millions of Californians, including veterans, children, seniors, people with disabilities, and those served by safety-net hospitals and clinics. Thanks to the generosity of Kaiser Permanente, the California Medical Association, in partnership with the Protect Our Health Care Coalition, has launched a national voter-to-voter texting campaign to stop the cuts to Medicaid.

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Share your feedback on proposed CMA governance reforms

The California Medical Association (CMA) Governance Technical Advisory Committee (GTAC) has released a new proposal to change the business of the House of Delegates (HOD) and modify the resolution process. This reform package is designed to strengthen member engagement, elevate the voice of the HOD, increase transparency, and ensure that CMA’s governance remains nimble, representative and strategic. Please review the proposal below and provide any feedback by June 13, 2025.  

Key Proposal Highlights: 

• Business of the House:  HOD will focus on prioritized resolutions, board-referred items and other business as prescribed by the CMA Bylaws. More...

Governor Newsom’s budget proposal violates voter trust and threatens Medi-Cal access

In response to the Governor’s May Revision to the 2025-26 state budget, California Medical Association (CMA) President Shannon Udovic-Constant, M.D., issued the following statement:

"The Newsom administration’s decision to divert voter-approved Proposition 35 and Proposition 56 funds is a direct violation of the will of California voters.

"Instead of honoring the clear intent of Prop 35 and voters – to increase access to care for Medi-Cal patients through a protected funding stream – the Governor is proposing to use this money to patch a budget shortfall of the state’s own making. At the same time, the Governor is repurposing Prop 56 dollars (passed in 2016) that provide critical funding to family planning and reproductive health care services and dental care. More...

Prior authorization bill would require true peers make decisions

What’s the news: Only specialty board-certified physicians in the same field as the treating physician would be allowed to review prior authorization treatment decisions in Medicare, Medicare Advantage and Part D prescription drug plans if recently reintroduced bipartisan legislation that the AMA supports ultimately becomes law. In late March, Representatives Mark Green, MD, (R, Tenn.) and Kim Schrier, MD, (D-Wash.) reintroduced H.R. 2433, the Reducing Medically Unnecessary Delays in Care Act of 2025. More...

Which physician specialties are seeing a drop in burnout

After years of rising, physician burnout rates are showing signs of improvement, but the strain on doctors is far from eliminated. An exclusive survey from the AMA reveals that while overall burnout has declined across the physician specialties, each field continues to face special, ongoing challenges. 

Across specialties such as emergency medicine and primary care, physicians are still grappling with long hours, administrative demands, and mental fatigue. The downward trend offers hope, but experts caution that sustained progress will require specialty-specific support, systemic change, and continued attention to physician well-being. More...

Bill would freeze student loan interest during residency

Student-loan interest adds up—quickly. According to the U.S. Department of Education, a $10,000 loan at 6.8% interest accrues about $1.86 in interest each day. With resident physicians graduating medical school with a median debt load of about $205,000, the daily interest on the initial loan balance is going to be more than 20 times that figure.  Recently introduced bipartisan, bicameral legislation introduced in Congress could offer resident physicians a much-deserved financial lifeline. 

The Resident Education Deferred Interest (REDI) Act (S. 942/H.R. 2028) is co-sponsored by Reps. Brian Babin, DDS (R-Texas) and Chrissy Houlahan (D-Pa.) on the House side and Sens. John Boozman (R-Ark.) and Jacky Rosen (D-Nev.) in the upper chamber. The legislation would allow physicians to qualify for interest-free deferment on their federal student loans during residency.

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