The recent immigration raids and cuts to Medicaid have not only caused fear among hospital patients, but people have stopped going to their medical appointments by up to 50%.

People aren't coming in anymore, said Angela Bi, an emergency medicine physician at LA General Medical Center. I've also had several patients tell me they want to leave the emergency room because they're afraid of La Migra. They don't want to be admitted.

A three-year veteran of LA General Medical Center, Dr. Bi said each person should evaluate their own health care needs before deciding not to go to a clinic or hospital.

Even if I tell someone they need to be admitted, we're put in very difficult situations because we're limited in what we can do with La Migra, she said. "I'm just telling them they need to take care of their health."

Dr. Bi said that after the immigration raids, from an average of 30 patients she saw during her shift at the hospital, health care was cut in half. People stopped coming or canceled their appointments.

While she acknowledged that the county is working with limited resources, in the contract negotiations between the Committee of Interns and Residents (CIR/SEIU) with Fesia Davenport, executive director of Los Angeles County, they are unwilling to budge on the need to eliminate or cut $2.2 million from the union, a vital resource codified in the contract, which is under threat.

"We have acquired three ultrasound machines for emergencies with our own funds and those from the hospital," he said. "But we need money to improve resources and salaries, since we work up to 60, 800, or 100 hours a week," he said.

With these three machines, they have been able to see the organs of the human body and analyze what is happening with the heart, the bladder, or the gallbladder.

"It is super important to be able to know exactly what is happening because our patients sometimes arrive extremely sick,And we need to know exactly what we can do for them when they arrive to save lives," Dr. Bi emphasized. "When they arrive late for a checkup, sometimes it's already too late."

The lack of equipment to perform professional work could not only cost people waits of 8 to 10 hours, but also cause them to die in the emergency room.

"By having the right machines, we can detect the treatment a person needs more quickly, before it's too late," said Dr. Bi, who revealed that patients have died in emergency rooms without ever having been seen by a doctor.

Death Sentence

During a visit to Los Angeles General Medical Center, accompanied by resident physicians, Democratic State Senator Maria Elena Durazo highlighted the critical need to protect the so-called Patient Care Fund (PCF) amid ICE raids and Medicaid cuts.

Durazo stressed that cuts in medical funding at the federal level and possibly at the county level could represent a death sentence for thousands of people.

"The hospital management's obligation is to protect maximum services for our community, for the most vulnerable," the senator said. "We don't want to see cuts that will affect our families' health and access to the hospital."

According to Governor Gavin Newsom, nearly three million people in California are at risk of losing their Medicaid coverage in the next decade following the passage of Trump's "Big and Beautiful Act."

Indeed, Medicaid will face cuts of more than a trillion dollars over the next decade under the Republican president's new tax law, and adults will have to verify twice a year that they work 80 hours a month, attend school or perform community service.

Two likely victims are Maria Alarcon, a 55-year-old woman from Puebla, Mexico, a Medicare recipient who has suffered from lupus for 28 years. Her illness is being treated at Los Angeles General Medical Center.

“My illness became more complicated because I stopped taking the medication,” Alarcon said. “I didn’t do it for fun, because I had to work every day. If I didn’t, I wouldn’t eat.” Lupus is a disease in which the immune system, which normally fights infections, mistakenly attacks the body itself.

Meanwhile, Pablo “N,”Born in Mexico City, who is covered by Medical, he revealed that he is diabetic and depends on injecting insulin every day.

"If they take away our coverage, they condemn us to death," said the Mexican immigrant.

They defend basic work equipment

The contract of some 1,400 doctors affiliated with the Service Employees International Union, SEIU Local 1957, expired on March 3, and among their main demands with Los Angeles County are key issues such as better wages, benefits, and the preservation of a $2.2 million Patient Care Fund, used to purchase vital medical equipment for hospitals.

Morgan Currier, regional director of the Intern and Resident Committee, SEIU Local 1957, informed La Opinion that they have been negotiating since December 2024, a new three-year contract.

"We understand that we are facing a very difficult financial climate for the county; we know that there are cuts, there are problems and budget cuts due to the fires in January and that the county owes a lot of money in lawsuits," she said.

However, she expressed that they will defend their members, who are frontline medical care providers in the county's hospitals, to ensure that they have what they need to take care of themselves, their families and also the county's patients.

After eight months of negotiations, the county has not confirmed whether it will maintain this solvent fund, which has existed since the 1970s, and the union does not know if it will be suspended or even withdrawn, despite its importance to patients.

"Doctors know they can't do their jobs without basic life-saving equipment," he said. "They constantly have to protect this fund that allows them to purchase basic life-saving equipment."

For doctors, this equipment is essential for caring for their patients.

They don't believe that because they work at a county hospital, they should receive a different level of care than any other hospital, like UCLA or Cedars Sina, Morgan Currier said. They understand that they have to make concessions because of the cuts that are happening. But the one thing they won't negotiate, or the one thing they won't transfer, is this patient care fund. It's too important, so they're willing to sacrifice things like more money for their education, more money for their children, in order to preserve this fund for the Los Angeles County community.

Expect to Negotiate in Good Faith

In response to alleged threats to cut the CIR Patient Care Fund due to budget cuts, a spokeswoman for the Los Angeles County Department of Health Services issued the following statement:

Los Angeles General Medical Center is one of the busiest Level I Trauma Centers and a leading regional medical center in Los Angeles County.

Los Angeles General Medical Center provides essential lifesaving care and high-quality patient care to our communities in Los Angeles; "Its focus on care has earned it an 'A' rating for patient safety."

"Los Angeles General Medical Center and all Department of Health Services clinics and medical centers are provided with the essential medical equipment and supplies to care for patients, including some of the most complex medical emergencies."

The spokesperson indicated that "it is important to clarify that our essential medical equipment and supplies are purchased from our Supplies and Services budget of approximately $2 billion. The $2.2 million Patient Care Fund, part of the CIR's contract with the county, is used to purchase supplemental supplies and equipment, and the selection of these is based on resident input and priorities.

She added, "While we welcome any additional funding that can further strengthen our programs and services, the fact is that our core medical services do not rely on this fund. In fact, the real threat to our patient services comes from federal Medicaid cuts from the recently passed Great Medicaid Act. These federal cuts have already diverted $280 million from our 2025-2026 budget and are expected to reduce $750 million annually for the next three years."

The spokesperson stated, We value and appreciate our healthcare workers and respect their right to collective bargaining. We hope that the good faith bargaining between the Los Angeles County Executive's Office and the union will result in a swift resolution that continues to protect patient care and value healthcare workers.

Likewise, she announced that while they understand the CIR is focused on a $2.2 million fund, it is important to note that Los Angeles Health Care operates on a $6.7 billion budget and during fiscal year 2024-2025, Services and Supplies costs were approximately $2 billion.

The bottom of 2.2 million, which the CIR focuses on, represents a very small part of our health care system," Los Angeles General Medical Center officials reported.