California Medical Association (CMA) President Robert E. Wailes, M.D., issued the following statement in response to Gov. Gavin Newsom's proposed budget:

“By positioning California to be the first state in the nation to fully realize universal health care access and coverage, Governor Newsom’s bold and balanced budget will strengthen our health care system and protect patients. We thank the Governor for his leadership in maintaining state funding levels that support patient access to critical Medi-Cal programs, transformative investments in behavioral and mental health care, and innovative incentives to improve equity in health care. As we enter the third year of the pandemic and face the nationwide surge of the Omicron variant, we must ensure our health care systems have the support needed to provide care to all Californians and we appreciate the Governor providing specific investments in health care workforce and increased funding vaccines, testing and booster shots. Physician practices face unprecedented demands and CMA looks forward to working with the Legislature and the Governor to ensure the health care needs of every Californian are met.”