California Legislators Debate Froot Loops and Free Condoms

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — California state lawmakers this year are continuing their progressive tilt on health policy with dozens of proposals including a ban on a Froot Loops ingredient and free condoms for high schoolers.

As states increasingly fracture along partisan lines, California Democrats are stamping their supermajority on legislation that they will consider until they adjourn at the end of August. But the cost of these proposals will be a major factor given the enormity of the state’s deficit, currently estimated at between $38 billion and $73 billion.

Health Coverage

Lawmakers are again considering whether to create a government-run, single-payer health care system for all Californians. AB 2200 is Democratic Assembly member Ash Kalra’s second such attempt, after a similar bill failed in 2022. The price tag would be enormous, though proponents say there would also be related savings. The high potential cost left Assembly Speaker Robert Rivas and others skeptical it could become law while the state faces a deficit.

AB 4 would require Covered California, the state’s health insurance exchange, to offer health insurance policies to people who are otherwise not able to obtain coverage because of their immigration status, to the extent it can under federal law. That could eventually lead to subsidized insurance premiums similar to those offered in Colorado and Washington.

Medical Debt

Health care providers and collection agencies would be barred from sharing patients’ medical debt with credit reporting agencies under SB 1061. The bill would also prohibit credit reporting agencies from accepting, storing, or sharing any such information without consumer consent. Last year, the Biden administration announced plans to develop federal rules barring unpaid medical bills from affecting patients’ credit scores. California would be the third state to remove medical bills from consumer credit reports.

Medi-Cal

The Medi-Cal program, which provides health care for low-income people, would be required to cover medically supportive food and nutrition starting July 1, 2026, under AB 1975. The bill builds on an existing but limited pilot program. The legislation says Californians of color could benefit from adequate food and nutrition to combat largely preventable chronic health conditions, and it’s one of 14 measures sought by the California Legislative Black Caucus as part of reparations for racial injustice.

More than 1.6 million California residents, disproportionately Latinos, have been kicked off Medi-Cal since the state resumed annual eligibility checks that were halted during the covid-19 pandemic. AB 2956 would have the state seek federal approval to slow those disenrollments by taking steps such as letting people 19 and older keep their coverage automatically for 12 months.

Violence Prevention

An increase in attacks on health workers is prompting lawmakers to consider boosting criminal penalties. In California, simple assault against workers inside an ER is considered the same as simple assault against almost anyone else, and carries a maximum punishment of a $1,000 fine and six months in jail. In contrast, simple assault against emergency medical workers in the field, such as an EMT responding to a 911 call, carries maximum penalties of a $2,000 fine and a year in jail. AB 977 would set the same maximum penalties for assaulting emergency health care workers on the job, whether they are in the field or an ER.

California could toughen penalties for interfering with reproductive health care services. Posting personal information or photographs of a patient or provider would be a felony if one of them is injured as a result. AB 2099 also boosts penalties for intimidation or obstruction.

Under SB 53, gun owners would have to lock up their weapons in state-approved safes or lockboxes where they would be inaccessible to anyone but the owner or another lawfully authorized user. Democ