Newsletters
September 2026 Newsletter
Vote No on
Proposition 44:
Keep
Community Clinics Open
When a budget rule threatens access to care
What happens when a rule meant to control spending makes it harder for a clinic to function?
Proposition 44 is not a harmless budget rule. It would bar community health centers like Redwoods Rural Health Center from investing more than 10% in the essential staffing, services, and technology that keep clinics like Redwoods Rural functioning.
That limit matters because dependable care requires more than an exam room.
It requires trained employees, qualified workers, safe facilities, working systems, and the day-to-day support that keeps patients’ care moving.
At a glance
7 million patients depend on community health clinics, and clinics serve one in three Medi-Cal patients.
Proposition 44 Would Tie Clinics’ Hands
Proposition 44 would impose a rigid 10% cap on what community health centers can invest in essential staffing, services, and technology.
That may sound like a simple budget rule, but a statewide formula cannot account for the real costs faced by the clinic in your community.
A clinic cannot provide dependable care if it cannot train employees, recruit qualifi ed workers, maintain its facilities, manage billing, or support the systems patients rely on every day. These functions are part of the foundation of care, not optional extras.
By imposing an arbitrary cap, Proposition 44 would put a political formula ahead of patients and local needs. The result could be reduced hours, fewer services, or a clinic closure—changes that would weaken community health care like RRHC.
Millions of Patients Could Feel the Consequences
The people placed at risk are the 7 million patients who depend on community health clinics.
They include:
Children and working families who rely on accessible care.
Uninsured people who may have nowhere else to turn.
Seniors and veterans who depend on trusted community providers.
One in three Medi-Cal patients served by community clinics.
These patients cannot simply absorb reduced hours, fewer services, or a clinic closure. For many, a community clinic is their trusted and most accessible source of care. When that source is weakened, access to care is weakened with it.
Rural and Underserved Communities Face the Greatest Risk
The danger is even greater in rural and medically underserved communities.
In our area the nearest alternative provider may be hours away. A reduction in services or a clinic closure is not a minor inconvenience; it will mean a much longer journey before a patient can receive care.
If Proposition 44 forces clinics to cut essential operations or close their doors, millions of Californians could be left with nowhere to turn. Reduced access can also delay care. Delayed care does not save money—it allows manageable health problems to become more serious, more costly, and harder on families.
California should strengthen community health centers, especially where they are a trusted and accessible source of care—not tie their hands and risk reduced access, longer travel, and clinic closures.
Essential Operations Are What Keep Clinics Open
Staff training, billing and accounting, janitorial and maintenance work, human resources, workforce recruitment, rent, utilities, and fi re and earthquake insurance are not wasteful overhead. They are essential operations that allow clinics to remain dependable and open.
Training helps employees do their jobs effectively.
Billing and accounting support the systems that keep clinic operations running.
Janitorial and maintenance work help clinics maintain safe facilities.
Human resources and workforce recruitment help clinics hire capable people.
Rent and utilities keep the facility available and functioning.
Fire and earthquake insurance help protect the clinic and the people who rely on it.
Together, these responsibilities keep appointments running, support the systems patients rely on every day, and help clinics remain open when patients need them. Treating them as wasteful spending misunderstands how community care works.
Protect the Clinics California Communities Depend On
Proposition 44 would weaken the foundation of community health care by limiting the essential investments that keep clinics staffed, equipped, maintained, and open. It would place millions of patients at risk, with rural and medically underserved communities facing especially serious consequences.
The choice is clear: California should put patients and local needs ahead of an arbitrary statewide cap. Protect care for 7 million patients and preserve a lifeline for rural and underserved communities: vote no on Proposition 44.