Organizations cannot successfully advocate for issues without engaging in effective budget advocacy. While the process is opaque, Advocates successfully navigates this process to secure and protect funding for CHCs and its patients. Below is a summary of our 2024 budget priorities:

Supplemental Payment Pool

Ensuring Managed Care Organization (MCO) tax funding allocated for CHCs is included in the FY 24-25 budget to supplement the non-hospital clinic 340B Supplemental Payment Pool. This infusion of funding will double the payment pool to at least $205M satisfying our budget priority from 2022.
Budget Outcome: Funding preserved, but delayed until FY 25-26 to start in January 1, 2026.

SB 525 Implementation

Seeking funding to help support the implementation of SB 525, the healthcare worker minimum wage law. Budget efforts will seek to supplement a CHC’s PPS rate by acquiring an APM to cover the costs associated with well-deserved wage increases for CHC workers.
Budget Outcome: Unsuccessful in a budget deficit, but efforts will continue in future budget years.

MCO Tax Funding

Ensuring that revenues from the MCO tax are used to supplement the healthcare delivery system and not simply to reduce the state’s budget deficit.
Budget Outcome: Some revenue will be used to address the budget deficit while preserving key healthcare investments and rate increases.

Health Center Climate Equity

Creating a pilot project to fund five regional community health consortiums to support member health centers in developing a plan to notify patients with elevated risk of extreme health and/or unhealthy air quality risk events. 
Budget Outcome: Efforts are ongoing to reallocate existing funding for these purposes.