Health Care Workers Account

1. (a) The department shall, subject to the stakeholder input requirements of Section 14199.121, use the moneys in the Health Care Workers Account for the purpose of attracting, retaining, and expanding the pool of health care workers available to treat Medi-Cal patients as set forth in this section.
2. (b) Seventy-five percent of the moneys in the account shall be deposited in the Graduate Medical Education Subaccount, which is hereby created in the Health Care Workers Account. Moneys in this subaccount shall be transferred to the University of California for the administration and expenditure to other qualified entities to expand graduate medical education in order to achieve the goal of increasing the number of physician and surgeon residency slots and expanding the number of locations offering physician and surgeon residency programs, as compared to the number of residency slots and program locations in place on December 31, 2023. For the purposes of this section, all allopathic and osteopathic residency programs accredited by federally recognized accrediting organizations and located in California shall be eligible to apply to receive funding to support resident education in California. No later than January 1, 2027, the department may seek federal approval for the programs created or expanded pursuant to this subdivision. However, the graduate medical education programs are not contingent upon federal approval and federal financial participation.

3. (c) Twenty-five percent of the moneys in the account shall be deposited in the Medi-Cal Workforce Subaccount, which is hereby created in the Health Care Workers Account. The department may enter into an interagency agreement with another state government agency or entity to administer and implement a grant program funded by the Medi-Cal Workforce Subaccount as set forth in this subdivision.

   1. (1)

      1. (A) No sooner than January 1, 2027, the department or its designated state government agency or entity shall issue grants pursuant to this subdivision with available moneys in the Medi-Cal Workforce Subaccount to strengthen and support the development and retention of the Medi-Cal workforce through bona fide labor-management cooperation committees.
      2. (B) Criteria shall be established, pursuant to the stakeholder input requirements of Section 14199.121, for grants to bona fide labor-management cooperation committees to support the development of high-quality workforce development programs.

   2. (2) The criteria for grant awards may include, but is not limited to, the following:

      1. (A) Implementing workforce training programs to promote patient safety, improve quality outcomes, and advance employee career opportunities.
      2. (B) Developing and supporting health care workforce apprenticeship and preapprenticeship programs.
      3. (C) Recruiting and retaining workforce.
      4. (D) Funding for training organizations such as Taft-Hartley training funds, to support the development of the workforce.
      5. (E) Additional investments in workforce capacity.
   3. (3) In issuing grants pursuant to this subdivision, the department or its designated state government agency or entity may give preference to a bona fide labor-management cooperation committee that is organized on a multiemployer basis and involves multiple labor organizations.