Fortina Hernández is said to be “people who know everything.”
For more than 20 years, community health agents have helped hundreds of families in the southeastern Los Angeles, sharing information on cheap health insurance, and helping to manage drugs for chronic diseases. She is informed by the expression, “Prevention ons is worth one pound of treatment.”
But she must earn about $ 20 per hour from the community health organization and maintain a second job to maintain the second job. She said in Spanish. “We build trust. We provide support. We should rely on shoulders, but we do not receive fair wages.”
California Higher rates More chronic diseases It is highly likely not to buy insuranceFace with more cultural and linguistic barriers when trying to approach the service. Research shows their work Can be reduced In addition to visiting emergency rooms and emergency treatment.
The state has a close relationship with a series of series. Expert recommendation In 2019, we standardize education and authentication, integrate these workers into medical personnel, and provide fair wages, including repayment through Medicaid Health Insurance Program, Medicaid Health Insurance Program, to compensate for volunteers or low wages. But in six years, California has resigned from these initiatives.
The state government has removed the certification program and rolled up almost all the funds to train and expand this workforce, even if the personnel set their goals. 25,000 workers Until this year. Medi-CAL has begun to deal with services, but the participation health plan is difficult to repay the workers by setting the uneven billing requirements. And the state did not follow the planned wage increase.
The federal funds were just passed, and President Donald Trump was for immigrants to deport. Personal Medicaid data sharing DEPARTMENT of Homeland Security -Advocates are giving up health equality initiatives for California for immigrants, colored people and low -income people.
“We are in a terrible situation now,” said Cary Sanders, chief policy officer of the California Fan-National Health Network.
“The state has taken the necessary measures to ensure fiscal stability, but the administration continues to talk with community health workers,” said ELANA ROSS. Potential Presidential CandidateWe are doing our best to defend immigrants for immigrants in the Trump administration.
‘Our office is on the street’
In California, there are more than 60,000 community health personnel, including about 9,200 people, which are expected to grow 13% in the next 10 years, three times faster than all occupations. 2024 Data In the US Labor Statistics Bureau. But experts say that this figure is the rank, given that this figure is a variety of titles and health care and healthy workers and government agencies.
Community health workers are an umbrella term that includes fellow supporters and community health managers. These workers, often known as promoters, I tend to be a woman People who work in clinic, hospitals, public health departments, and local non -profit organizations can be reliable and understand the most urgent health demands of the community.
In addition to managing chronic diseases such as heart disease and diabetes, people are also encouraged and helped with reproductive health, children’s health and oral hygiene. Dementia Prevent injuries and review the drug. When reporting domestic violence and other abuse, people can feel safe. It also connects people to housing and food support. Hernández said, “Community health agents are not sitting at the desk.” Our office is on the street. “
In 2019, the California Future Health and Health Committee recommended community health workers into health care systems and recommended the state to approve in 2022. $ 221 million California’s health care access and information departments for three years in the California health care and information departments are recruited, trained and certified.
The agency tried to standardize education and certification, but some community groups were afraid to create barriers to entry by not providing sufficient credit for living experiences and cultural competencies. But just as the agency provided more flexibility and allowed community -based education, the state raised $ 250 million last year due to budget constraints. This year’s certification program has been officially removed.
The Andrew Diluccia spokesman is currently considering a program to certify the community organization, not individual workers, and plans to spend $ 12 million for technical support, human resources development and salary for those who work with immigrant communities.
According to the National Health Policy Academy 32 Different State Provides voluntary or essential community health workers certification programs.
Some community health advisors say that there is no opportunity to pioneer the career path of California Guy. Currently, some courses offer by non -profit organizations, counties and universities A fee is requiredDegree, English fluency or pre -experience. Most of them are concentrated in San Francisco or Los Angeles Training desert In many countries.
Lourdes Bernis, Ecuador’s dentist, is a model of how community health workers can be integrated into the health care system. She started as a volunteer Promotora 10 years ago and was free trained at Los Angeles County in 2019, and she was able to move to a full -time job with the benefits of the County’s mental health so that she can manage depression and anxiety when she recovers from drug use.
Bernis is now planning to be a peer -to -peer support specialist inside the hospital and clinic. Meanwhile, many colleagues with decades of experience continue to serve as low -wage and cannot afford to develop for development. Bernis said, “There is a promoter with 20 to 25 years of experience, but it is still volunteering.
Medical’s role
MEDI-CAL began to deal with services in July 2022 to pay for local health agents, but California I stopped raising the planned wage. After the voters approved the proposal 35, they hiked the doctors, hospitals, community clinics and other providers for them. Since then, the state has not yet set up a uniform system on how to sign a contract with an organization that hires a community health workers.
Maria Lemus, a non -profit organization based in Los Angeles, a representative of community health agents, said, “We must go beyond the hoop.” “Only confusion occurs because each plan can have different requirements.”
Lemus said the organization took almost six months to pay as a health plan.
And Medi-CAL repayment is associated with individual tasks of $ 9.46 to $ 27.54 for 30 minutes, but advocates say that they are trusted and are not completely compensated for the follow-up time with the patient. Advocates say that these workers should earn more than $ 30 per visit, but many people $ 21 per hourOften there is no benefit.
Advocates say that this service was surprised by how rare it is in the program with 15 million California residents. According to the main data, more than 16,000 Medi-CAL registrants used this service to 68,000 last year. Sanders said, “I don’t think the governor has reached the possibility of talking, and I imagined that we can all be achieved.”
Griselda Melgoza, a spokesman for the California Health Service Bureau, said that the agency, which manages Medi-CAL, said, “We have seen steady and upward trends.”
proposal This year, we died this year to evaluate whether Medi-Cal Managed Care Plans is performing sufficient volunteer activities and education to registrants of community health services this year.
At any time, it is more important to see
Due to the Trump administration’s reduction in health funds and passing the GOP tax and spending laws, advocates are afraid to reduce the labor force that solves health imbalances by providing much less funding and support for community health personnel. The Ministry of Public Health, the Ministry of Public Health, said that the community health workers have already reduced more than half to 20 points.
But volunteer work is important at any time. The Trump administration seems to continue to be under raids. At least one health clinic In the state, advocates and policy researchers say that community health workers can act as a broker for immigrant patients who are afraid to receive medical services in hospitals and clinics.
Without the main certification program, as the impression and education funds decrease, the road to specializing in community health personnel is unclear, and workers leave the feeling left.
Hernández, a veteran community health agent, said, “The community trusts me.
I wrote this article KFF Health NewsPublished California Health LineEditorial independent service California Health Care Foundation.
