West Sacramento Mayor Martha Guerrero

WEST SACRAMENTO, CA (MPG) - California’s billionaires pay much lower tax rates than what working families pay out of every paycheck. And now, massive federal funding cuts are beginning to push key parts of the California healthcare system to the brink of collapse, including in Sacramento, where UC Davis Medical Center and Methodist Hospital, are reportedly at risk of layoffs and department closures due to federal healthcare cuts. 

To stop these dire consequences, West Sacramento Mayor Martha Guerrero is entering the battle, calling on billionaires to pay their fair share.

“Every day, I hear from families who are worried about whether they can afford to see a doctor, fill a prescription, or if their local clinic will remain open. The California Billionaire Tax is about making sure those fears don’t become reality. When healthcare providers face cuts and potential closures, it’s working families, seniors, and children who pay the price,” said West Sacramento Mayor Martha Guerrero. “I’m proud to support the Billionaire Tax, and urge West Sacramento residents to join me in voting for it this November.”

As federal healthcare cuts from H.R. 1 begin to rip healthcare away from millions of Californians, Guerrero is joining a growing list of lawmakers supporting a one-time 5% emergency tax on California’s roughly 200 billionaires as a direct response to the massive cuts. The commonsense measure is designed to ensure that billionaires pay their fair share to stabilize and protect the state’s vast healthcare system, including hospitals, nursing homes, community health centers, and home care services. The California Billionaire Tax coalition also recently filed more than 1.5 million signatures to qualify for the November ballot. 

“When millions lose coverage and services disappear, it doesn’t just strain our system; it puts lives at risk every single day. No one should have to choose between getting care and going without it,” said Lanette Griffin, a hospital laboratory assistant at Kaiser Permanente South Sacramento Medical Center. “We need to restore funding and make the wealthy pay their share to protect our patients.”

The more than 400 hospitals statewide have already laid off more than 3,400 healthcare workers as of mid-March, with a second wave of layoffs expected as funding cuts tied to recent federal policy changes are phased in over the next several years. Statewide, projections show the cuts could result in the loss of up to 145,000 healthcare jobs, impacting hospitals, clinics, and home care providers alike. 

Without revenue from the California Billionaire Tax, federal healthcare cuts are expected to put an estimated 83 California hospitals and clinics at risk of closure. Cuts and closures have already started, impacting communities from Los Angeles to Oakland, to Glenn County.  

 

In November, California voters will at last have a chance to make billionaires pay their fair share to help prevent that, through a commonsense ballot initiative that places a one-time 5% tax on the wealth of approximately 200 billionaires who reside in the Golden State. Ninety percent of that funding will go to offset Medi-Cal cuts in order to prevent ER and other service closures, and 10% will go toward funding food assistance and public education.

 

The California Billionaire Tax Act proposes a one-time emergency tax on the wealth of the state’s ultra-high-net-worth billionaires to safeguard Medi-Cal, keep hospitals and emergency rooms open, expand food assistance, and support public education. The initiative is a direct response to federal healthcare cuts under HR1 that threaten healthcare access and economic stability for millions of Californians.