The Service Employees International Union United Healthcare Workers West has withdrawn one ballot initiative that would have capped hospital executive pay and another that would have set strict limits on hospital pricing.
The agreement with the California Hospital Association calls for a $100 million, two-year campaign to overhaul Medi-Cal, which is the state’s health care system for the poor. Dave Regan with SEIU-UHW says improving Medi-Cal would be too big a job for one group.
“Separately we have not gotten the job done,” says Regan. “California is 49th out of the 50 states in terms of the adequacy of a program that serves 20 percent of the population and growing.”
The funds will be spent to promote legislative and regulatory improvements to Medi-Cal. The two sides say they may collaborate on a joint initiative for the Fall 2016 ballot.
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