The HASD&IC Board of Directors convened on May 11. Board Chair Tom Gammiere, corporate SVP/Regional Chief Executive – South, Scripps Health, officiated.
- 2022 CHPAC/CHPAC-FED Campaign: The campaign had reached 67% of the statewide goal as of May 11. Thank you to members for your collective support of CHPAC and helping to elect and connect with candidates who understand the important role hospitals play in our state. Please visit CHPAC to learn more and join in support.
- Emergency Medical Services (EMS): Board members received an update on our collaborative work with the County of San Diego EMS, followed by discussion to guide HASD&IC’s continued advocacy efforts.
- Community Health Needs Assessment: Board members received an update on the 2022 Community Health Needs Assessment (CHNA). The objective of the CHNA is to identify and prioritize health issues and health needs in San Diego County. A report of the findings will be published later this year.
- Hospital Quality Institute (HQI): An updated Hospital Quality Improvement Platform was released in April for enhanced processing, analytics, and custom reporting. This web-based comparative quality analytics platform is free for members. The 2022 HQI Annual Conference was also announced. This year’s event will be held in two locations and include a leadership summit for C-suite attendees and focus on workforce issues/peer support, health equity, and health care transparency. The Southern California event is scheduled for Oct. 3-4 in Long Beach. Northern California is scheduled for Nov. 6-7 in Napa.
California Hospital Association (CHA): Carmela Coyle, President & CEO of CHA, gave an update and led discussion in several areas:
- COVID-19: Cases and hospitalizations are trending up, and potential surges remain a concern. Shortages of contrast media for CT scanning caused by a COVID-19-driven shutdown of a manufacturing facility in Shanghai has generated national attention, and conservation strategies are being implemented to preserve supplies.
- Federal Issues: Thank you was expressed to members who participated in the American Hospital Association Annual Meeting in Washington, D.C., and in virtual meetings with members of Congress convened by CHA. Impacts of inflation, workforce challenges, and behavioral health were identified as areas for continued focus with federal policymakers.
- State Issues: An historic agreement to modernize the Medical Injury Compensation Reform Act while maintaining important medical liability protections was announced last month by the Californians Allied for Patient Protection coalition (it includes CHA) and is moving through the Legislature. The Office of Health Care Affordability, workforce enhancement, and behavioral health are important issues in review of the Governor’s May Revision of the state budget. CHA will continue to advocate for revisions to support increases in Medi-Cal inpatient hospital fee-for-service rates and expanded Medi-Cal graduate medical education program. Thank you to members who traveled to Sacramento on May 9 to advocate for budget support and to let elected officials know modernization of 2030 seismic standards/disaster preparedness is a top priority.
For more information on the HASD&IC Board of Directors meeting or any of the issues discussed, please email Dimitrios Alexiou.