Sacramento, CA – The California Pan-Ethnic Health Network today released the following statement from the Executive Director Kiran Savage-Sangwan in response to Governor Gavin Newsom’s May Revision budget proposal for 2026-2027:
“The Governor’s budget continues devastatingly cruel cuts to health care for the most vulnerable immigrant communities that were proposed in January – and have already been firmly rejected by the State Senate. In light of the state’s surge of revenues, continuing to advance these brutal cuts, despite a 9-month delay, is further evidence that they aren’t a matter of math but a matter of values. The same is true of last year’s elimination of dental care and new Medi-Cal exclusions and fees based on immigration status.
“Under the Governor’s proposal, California would sharply limit care for immigrants who are survivors of domestic violence, trafficking and other traumas, effective July 1, 2027. The effect would be letting nutritional deficiencies, PTSD, and infectious disease advance until emergency care is required – poor policy from a health care or fiscal standpoint is just plain cruel. We applaud the Senate’s clear rejection of this devastating and fiscally reckless policy and encourage the Assembly to likewise fight for our immigrant neighbors.
“Additionally, at a time of rising food and housing costs, the Governor’s proposal doubles down on targeting the poorest Californians by increasing monthly health care premiums for immigrant adults from $30 to $50 a month, and reinstating the punitive asset test that forces seniors and people with disabilities to choose between having health care and maintaining extremely modest financial security.
“California is at a crossroads with new federal rules requiring states to create two separate programs, one for our immigrant communities and another for everyone else. It is up to California to ensure these separate programs are equal. We look forward to more details on a proposal to shift immigrant communities from Medi-Cal managed care to a fee-for-service model. In a tough budget year, we are hopeful that putting more dollars into care rather than insurance companies’ profits, executive salaries, and administrative bloat will allow more Californians to keep their full benefits and coverage. In fact, a recent LAO report pointed out that costs are rising faster in managed care plans compared to fee-for-service. However, this proposal will only be workable if it ensures communities won’t be disadvantaged by lack of access to the same network of providers and services managed care beneficiaries can access, including specialists regardless of geography, community health navigators, non-emergency medical transportation and language services, that gender-affirming care is protected, and that any savings are redirected into maintaining health care coverage for those who are eligible today while reversing cuts made to immigrant communities’ health and dental care.
“Putting life-saving care for farm workers, fast food workers, and janitors on the chopping block over and over again while the state eagerly anticipates multi-trillion dollar tech IPOs reveals a much deeper problem in our state. California has the resources to provide care for those who do our most thankless work and those who’ve endured unthinkable horrors to keep their families safe. We call on legislators to immediately reject health care cuts for immigrant populations, seek new revenues to protect care and commit one-time dollars into the safety-net reserve to keep our safety-net whole for the millions of Californians still at risk as federal cuts loom.”