A Special Message from the CEO about the 2016 Presidential Election

Many of L.A. Care’s stakeholders have reached out to me asking what they can expect from L.A. Care as a result of the recent election - given the pledges made during the campaign to “repeal and replace Obamacare” by President-elect Trump and Republican Congressional leaders.

At this early point, there is no announced plan about how to implement that campaign promise. For the moment, the Affordable Care Act is the law of the land. Accordingly, open enrollment for Covered California is proceeding, and Medi-Cal is still available to anyone who qualifies under the expansion rules in the ACA.

At L.A. Care, we stand for health care quality, access and inclusion. Whatever changes may come will not deter us from our mission to make quality health care accessible to vulnerable populations and to strengthen the safety net of providers who serve them. As the nation’s largest publicly operated health plan, we are the voice of two million Los Angeles County residents who rely on our commitment to the pursuit of continuous improvement in health care. Every step of the way, we will hold ourselves and our participating providers accountable for nothing less than the highest quality performance.

In this amazing and resilient democracy we call home, we will not be silent about the needs of our members in the many discussions ahead. Our best argument will be our recognized performance as a prudent custodian of public funds in serving the multifaceted needs of our members.

The election is behind us now. As we move forward, I trust and expect that all of us can be honorable in victory or defeat and treat our colleagues and neighbors with respect and kindness. Regardless of political affiliation, the words of Martin Luther King should inspire us all to keep faith: “Of all the forms of inequality, injustice in health care is the most shocking and inhumane.” 
 

John Baackes, CEO 
L.A. Care Health Plan