Jim Lott Says Yearly Budget Shortfalls Likely To Continue

California recently passed a budget, but it was "100 days past its mandated deadline," and if "delays had not occurred, the likelihood the governor snips $1 billion from health care programs at the last minute is greatly diminished," Jim Lott -- executive vice president of the Hospital Association of Southern California -- writes in a Payers & Providers opinion piece. Although health care providers "in California have become inured to making due with less, ... the galling insouciance that accompanies this year's budget is nothing short of breathtaking," Lott writes. He concludes, "Given that there is no economic brightening in sight, I suspect the ugly scenarios of budget shortfalls will continue for much of the coming decade. The state's health care sector better become used to both anticipated and last-minute budget cuts."

• "California's Bleak Budget Landscape" (Lott, Payers & Providers, 10/21).