Skilled nursing care apparently won’t be covered by the state of California under a single-payer health system after lawmakers failed to act on the measure Monday.
The legislation, AB 1400, would have established a state-covered healthcare plan for residents, including skilled nursing, vision care, emergency services and transportation and prescription drugs.
It needed to pass the full California State Assembly on Monday in order to survive the current legislative session but bill author Rep. Ash Kalra (D) declined to bring it up for a vote.
The California Association of Health Facilities, which was closely monitoring the situation, said there were more pressing issues for lawmakers to pursue.
“Our overall concerns include the need for a funding source, a tax on business and the upheaval it would create in the healthcare marketplace,” a spokeswoman told McKnight’s Long-Term Care News on Monday.
The California Nurses Association criticized the decision not to hold a vote on the measure.
“Nurses condemn this failure by elected representatives to put patients above profits, especially during the worst surge of COVID-19 yet, at a time when it’s more clear than ever before that health care must be a right, not just a privilege for those who can afford it,” the association said in a statement Monday evening.
The State Assembly on Monday did pass (47-12) a measure that would prohibit entities from acquiring and operating a skilled nursing facility in the state without first obtaining a license from the state’s Department of Public Health. It now heads to the state Senate for consideration.
