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.
While it’s been hard to miss all the headlines about Balboa Park’s new parking fees — fewer restaurant patrons, declining museum visitors, and frustrated business owners — you’ve probably heard a lot less about how this change is affecting Naval Medical Center San Diego, also known as Balboa Medical Center.
Last week, the HASD&IC Board of Directors held its first meeting of the year. As with each new year, we welcomed new board members, who are helping us navigate the challenges and priorities facing hospitals in San Diego and Imperial counties.
Last week, I joined a panel of leaders at the San Diego Business Journal’s Economic Trends 2026 event to discuss the forces shaping our local economy in the year ahead.