July 1 marked an important moment for health care in San Diego County as two significant partnerships officially took effect in North County, bringing together Tri-City Medical Center and Sharp HealthCare in Oceanside and Palomar Health and UC San Diego Health in Escondido and Poway.
As we prepare to celebrate the Fourth of July, we are reminded that this holiday represents more than parades, barbecues, and fireworks. At its core, the Fourth of July reflects our nation’s enduring commitment to service, shared responsibility, and strengthening the communities we call home.
San Diego’s health care community played a quiet but critical role in April’s historic moment for space exploration. When the Artemis II astronauts returned to Earth earlier this spring, local Navy Medicine teams were there to support the successful recovery of the crew and the Orion spacecraft.
Last week, the San Diego County Health and Safety Act (a measure that would raise the sales tax by a half-cent across San Diego County) qualified for the November ballot. This citizens’ initiative — which is supported by nonprofit and labor organizations, including HASD&IC — is focused on protecting health care, childcare and public safety, and addressing the Tijuana River sewage crisis.
During this Mental Health Awareness Month, we are reminded that behavioral health is an essential part of overall health. Increasingly, the pressures facing our communities — from economic instability to policy changes affecting access to basic needs like nutrition support, including loss of CalFresh benefits under the One Big Beautiful Bill Act — are contributing to heightened stress and mental health challenges.
It’s safe to say there has been no shortage of discussion lately about the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA). While deeply problematic, this legislation is just the latest in a long line of mounting pressures hospitals are being asked to absorb. That reality is why HASD&IC and our member hospitals have been engaged in conversations across the region about what federal policy changes could mean for health care in San Diego and Imperial counties.
April is National Stress Awareness Month, an opportunity to recognize the very real ways stress affects the health, the work, and daily lives of not just those in the health care field, but also the patients and communities you serve.
For all the recent discussion about the pending financial implications of last year’s One Big Beautiful Bill Act, the consequences are becoming very real as changes to CalFresh eligibility take effect, placing basic nutrition and health at risk for thousands in San Diego and Imperial counties.
Recently, I had the opportunity to attend the American College of Healthcare Executives (ACHE) Annual Congress in Houston.
As we look ahead to the potential implications of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (H.R. 1), it is essential that we begin preparing now. Funding cuts, combined with work requirements for non-disabled Medicaid enrollees, an increase in the frequency of eligibility redeterminations, restricted eligibility for some immigrant groups, and tightened rules around provider taxes and state-directed payments, will require us to re-engage familiar strategies, adopt new ones, and strengthen our efforts to safeguard coverage for the most vulnerable residents of San Diego and Imperial counties.
