Event Date: Apr 30, 2024
Location: Sacramento, CA
On April 30, 2024, CPEHN convened over 20 partners, representing a coalition organizations advocating for communities of color in California, at the Sacramento Capitol for a health equity focused advocacy day. The primary objective was to champion legislative reforms aimed at transforming healthcare systems and addressing upstream factors that impact health, with a critical emphasis on improving access to mental health services. Key legislative priorities included bills such as AB 4 (Arambula) Health4All, which seeks to remove barriers to healthcare access based on immigration status, and AB 2956 (Boerner), ensuring continuous Medi-Cal coverage to support uninterrupted mental health care. Additionally, initiatives like SB 1016 (Gonzalez) and SB 245 (Hurtado) & AB 311 (Santiago) aimed to uncover and mitigate health disparities, including those affecting mental health, among marginalized populations.
The advocacy day also highlighted efforts to strengthen access to culturally and linguistically responsive care. Proposals like SB 1078 (Min), establishing the Office of Language Access (OLA), and advocating for increased Medi-Cal reimbursement rates for Community Health Workers (CHWs), Promotores, and Peer Specialists, underscored our commitment to ensuring equitable mental health services for all Californians. By collaborating closely with legislators and advocating for these critical reforms, we are striving to improve mental health outcomes and promote overall wellbeing across diverse communities throughout the state.