Gov. Jerry Brown said the changes in social safety net programs are necessary to cope with a budget deficit.

KQED: New Calif. Budget Hits Social Safety Nets Hard
Governor Jerry Brown unveiled his proposed state budget today for the next fiscal year, and the event had a familiar look. Brown proposed big cuts to welfare and other safety net programs — and that's assuming voters approve tax hikes slated for the November ballot. ... there is a very small fee increase in this budget that helps fund health care for kids in low-income families (Musiker and Myers, 1/5).

The Wall Street Journal: California Takes Aim At Budget Gap
The proposal — which typically serves as a template as legislators wrangle over the budget for the following fiscal year — calls for $4.2 billion in cuts to programs such as welfare and in-home supportive services, along with tax measures and other changes that would boost revenue by $4.7 billion (Vara, 1/6).

HealthyCal: Brown's Budget Would Slash Safety Net
Brown also proposed ending state-subsidized domestic services to disabled people who live with other non-disabled adults or minor children, on the theory that those people can take care of themselves. ... Brown also proposed moving more people in the state’s Medi-Cal program into managed care, a move he said would save more than $1 billion a year when fully implemented. And he suggested charging families who get their insurance through the Healthy Families program higher premiums while combining that program's services with Medi-Cal (Weintraub, 1/5).

California Healthline: Communities of Color Hit Hardest by Health Cuts, Advocates Say
Health care officials and advocates expressed serious concern over Democratic Gov. Jerry Brown's latest round of budget proposals that include reductions to community clinics, hospitals, and programs such as Healthy Families and CalWORKs. ... [H]ealth officials and advocates seem a little weary of the constant and continued reductions (Gorn, 1/6).

KQED's State of Health blog: Governor's Budget: Health and Social Services Cuts
Reaction has been swift from groups that work on behalf of the poor and disabled. From the HHS Network of CA, a coalition of organizations including the Western Poverty Law Center and Health Access. ... From Darcel Lee, Executive Director of the California Black Health Network. ... From the California Medical Association. ... From Jean Ross, Executive Director of the California Budget Project (Aliferis, 1/5).

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