New Ambulance Provider: The San Diego City Council voted 9-0 at its April 13 meeting to switch ambulance providers from American Medical Response (AMR) to Falck, a Danish company that is the largest ambulance operator in the world. This is the first time in 32 years that San Diego will have a new ambulance provider. The five-year contract requires a six-month transition period from AMR to Falck.
Imperial County Medi-Cal: The Imperial County Board of Supervisors recently submitted a Letter of Intent (LOI) to move toward a County Organized Health System with California Health and Wellness. While the LOI indicates the county’s interest in a single-plan model, it is non-binding.
Project 100% Eliminated: At its April 6 meeting, the San Diego County Board of Supervisors voted to end Project 100%, an initiative in which public assistance investigators within the District Attorney’s office conducted unannounced home visits to CalWORKS applicants before granting benefits to residents who already met all other eligibility requirements. This action by the Board of Supervisors will remove unnecessary barriers and ensure residents have greater access to necessary social services.
June 15 Reopening: Gov. Newsom’s April 6 announcement that the Blueprint for a Safer Economy will be lifted as early as June 15 does not impact the state of emergency, executive order provisions, or California Department of Public Health (CDPH) All Facilities Letters that support COVID-19 response — all of these remain intact. However, CDPH hospital visitor guidelines are based on the tier of the county in which the hospital is located. CHA will engage with CDPH on how this and any other guidance to hospitals will be revised once the Blueprint for a Safer Economy is no longer in effect.
COVID-19 Cases: Even as the state opens vaccine eligibility to those age 16 and over, Dr. Adolphe Edward, CEO of El Centro Regional Medical Center (ECRMC), is concerned about the rising case numbers in Imperial County. He has seen increases in case numbers, which has caused ECRMC to proactively pop upsurge tents to treat COVID-19 patients once again.
