The lawmakers met for two hours with San Gabriel Valley community leaders, bringing together health care providers, legal services organizations and immigrant advocates to discuss how California can continue to support AAPI and immigrant families and safeguard access to health care in the face of Trump’s attacks and draconian H.R. 1 cuts.
SAN GABRIEL, CALIFORNIA — Speaker Robert Rivas and Assemblymember Mike Fong hosted a community discussion in Los Angeles County on Friday, focusing-in on ways California’s leaders can empower immigrant and AAPI communities and defend access to health care in the face of Trump’s cuts and attacks.
Joined by San Gabriel Valley community advocates, health care and legal services leaders, educators and elected officials, the meeting focused on how California can mitigate H.R. 1 cuts to Medi-Cal and safety net programs, which disproportionately impact communities of color, including AAPI families.
What Speaker Rivas and Asm. Fong Say
“The best public policy doesn’t begin in Sacramento at the Capitol. It begins by listening to the Californians who are closest to the challenges, because they are always closest to the solutions. Los Angeles is at the epicenter of unprecedented ICE action and Trump’s attacks on our health care system. I’m grateful for those leading in San Gabriel Valley, and to Assemblymember Mike Fong, who is always an incredible champion for the region.”
—Speaker of the Assembly Robert Rivas
“Health care and immigration are issue areas typically not discussed together, but both are in crisis. It is important to bring together local leaders and community partners for a timely discussion on current challenges and potential solutions. Thank you to Speaker Rivas for coming to the San Gabriel Valley to hear our stories and highlighting the state's leadership in keeping Californians healthy and safe.”
— Assemblymember Mike Fong
H.R.1 Impacts Hit Los Angeles Hard
One year after Trump and Congressional Republicans rammed through H.R. 1, the damage in Los Angeles County isn’t theoretical — it’s already here:
- Since H.R. 1 passed, 200,000 L.A. County residents have been disenrolled from full-scope Medi-Cal — that's roughly 1,100 people losing their health coverage every single day.
- One out of every five people losing coverage is a child.
- L.A. County is home to 3.3 million Medi-Cal recipients — one in three residents — including nearly 1 million children.
- According to a May 2026 report from the Labor Center at UC Berkeley, the number of uninsured Los Angeles residents could increase by 8.8% by 2030.
- County officials are warning that hundreds of thousands more residents are at risk of losing coverage as new eligibility rules and administrative barriers take effect.
The scale of what’s coming should alarm every Angeleno: UC Berkeley’s Labor Center projects that more than 1 million Medi-Cal enrollees in L.A. County could lose coverage by 2028, while county estimates show as many as 1.5 million Medi-Cal beneficiaries could be at risk once new federal work requirements take full effect on January 1, 2027.
The consequences will be felt across communities throughout the San Gabriel Valley, including AAPI communities. A California Budget Center analysis estimates nearly 300,000 employed Asian American adults and 16,000 employed Pacific Islander adults ages 26-64 in California are at risk of losing Medi-Cal due to new monthly premiums and burdensome recertification requirements.
Listening to Californians, Taking Action
Friday’s event in San Gabriel Valley with Assemblymember Fong continues Speaker Rivas’ commitment to meet with Californians in their communities to discuss the issues that matter most to Californians.
During this legislative session, the Speaker has hosted community conversations on immigration and health issues in the Central Coast, Los Angeles, the Central Valley and Orange County.
The event in Asm. Fong’s district included a legislative update from the Speaker’s policy staff, explaining the harmful impacts of H.R. 1 and how California has responded to protect access to essential services in the recently enacted 2026-27 state budget.
This year’s budget included more than $257 million in funding for immigration-related programs and services, including the DREAM Resource Centers, Children’s Holistic Immigration Representation Project, the Enhanced Services for Asylees and Vulnerable Non-Citizens (ESAVN) Program, the Stop the Hate Program, among others.
California is also fighting back against H.R. 1 cuts to health care — which rip coverage from over 2 million Californians. The state budget softens proposed cuts to safety net programs and keeps as many Californians covered as possible by providing over $300 million to keep refugees, asylees and victims of domestic violence in Medi-Cal and $300 million to Covered California to assist with premium subsidies. The budget also provides funding to counties for H.R. 1-related workload and supports public and distressed hospitals.
In response to Trump’s dangerous and violent immigration enforcement tactics, the Assembly has taken quick action to pass legislation that expands access to legal services, protects workers, and ensures families can safely access schools, health care, and other essential services. Measures aimed at increasing transparency and accountability in immigration enforcement, including requiring federal agents to identify themselves, have also gone into effect.
This year, several dozen Assembly bills are moving through the legislative process, proposals that would expand legal support, protect due process, and ensure local communities have the tools they need to respond to shifting federal enforcement policies.
At the San Gabriel Valley discussion, participants represented organizations that serve thousands of immigrant families every day — from community health centers and behavioral health providers to legal aid organizations, immigrant rights advocates, AAPI-serving nonprofits, educators and local government.
Speaker Rivas is committed to ongoing collaboration between state leaders and the local organizations on the front lines, and insights from these community conversations continue to inform the Assembly’s legislative priorities.
