{"id":78925,"date":"2026-02-02T22:04:13","date_gmt":"2026-02-03T06:04:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lapost.us\/?p=78925"},"modified":"2026-02-02T22:04:13","modified_gmt":"2026-02-03T06:04:13","slug":"governor-newsom-proposes-improving-access-to-menopause-health-care","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lapost.us\/?p=78925","title":{"rendered":"Governor Newsom proposes improving access to menopause health care"},"content":{"rendered":"<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>What you need to know:\u00a0<\/strong>Fulfilling a commitment he made to California women last year, Governor Newsom\u2019s budget proposal includes improved access to perimenopause, menopause and postmenopause health care.<\/p>\n<p><strong id=\"m_4317765672908945462docs-internal-guid-06cb0d7c-7fff-588b-02a0-aeee4373018f\">SACRAMENTO \u2013<\/strong>\u00a0As part of his 2026-27 budget proposal, Governor Gavin Newsom today\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/mclist.us7.list-manage.com\/track\/click?u=afffa58af0d1d42fee9a20e55&amp;id=083b4ea208&amp;e=0a97a8055b\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/mclist.us7.list-manage.com\/track\/click?u%3Dafffa58af0d1d42fee9a20e55%26id%3D083b4ea208%26e%3D0a97a8055b&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1770174496356000&amp;usg=AOvVaw1W1XSAc8V9irbK4--fv4bJ\">released a budget trailer bill proposal<\/a>\u00a0to support the inclusion of expanded perimenopause, menopause, and postmenopausal health care in the state.<\/p>\n<h4>\u201cThis proposal will expand access to essential, evidence-based care in a way that\u2019s affordable and fiscally responsible for the state. At a time when Trump\u2019s Big Ugly Bill is driving up health care costs nationwide, California is doing the opposite: lowering barriers and putting women\u2019s health first.\u201d <strong>Governor Gavin Newsom<\/strong><\/h4>\n<h4>\u201cAt every stage in life, women deserve access to affordable health care that meets them where they are\u2014especially when experiencing the life-altering symptoms connected to menopause conditions that have long been under-recognized in our health care system. California always has and will continue to invest in women, and I\u2019m proud that we are advancing awareness and expanding access to critical menopause-related care.\u201d\u00a0<strong>First Partner Jennifer Siebel Newsom<\/strong><\/h4>\n<p dir=\"ltr\">The proposal announced by Governor Newsom would:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li dir=\"ltr\" aria-level=\"1\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\" role=\"presentation\">Improve prescription drug coverage for symptoms of menopause by requiring certain health plans to cover FDA-approved treatments for perimenopause, menopause, and postmenopausal symptoms, including coverage in the Medi-Cal program<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li dir=\"ltr\" aria-level=\"1\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\" role=\"presentation\">Increase consumer and provider awareness by requiring plans to screen enrollees age 40 and older for menopause during primary care and OB\/GYN appointments<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li dir=\"ltr\" aria-level=\"1\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\" role=\"presentation\">Notify health plan\u00a0enrollees of the menopause services available to them<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li dir=\"ltr\" aria-level=\"1\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\" role=\"presentation\">Provide professional training incentives for physicians who specialize in menopause care<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li dir=\"ltr\" aria-level=\"1\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\" role=\"presentation\">Invest $3 million to support a statewide public awareness campaign<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p dir=\"ltr\">\nExpanding health care access while retaining affordability is especially important as consumers across the nation\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/mclist.us7.list-manage.com\/track\/click?u=afffa58af0d1d42fee9a20e55&amp;id=93016b1e35&amp;e=0a97a8055b\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/mclist.us7.list-manage.com\/track\/click?u%3Dafffa58af0d1d42fee9a20e55%26id%3D93016b1e35%26e%3D0a97a8055b&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1770174496356000&amp;usg=AOvVaw0rDsnT7XlBY86Gom9KCWlN\">face double-digit rate increases<\/a>\u00a0in health care premiums due to Trump\u2019s Big Ugly Bill.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;I commend Governor Newsom for including menopause language in the budget and continuing to prioritize women&#8217;s health,\u201d\u00a0<strong>said Assemblymember Rebecca Bauer-Kahan (D-Orinda).<\/strong>\u00a0\u201cDespite the widespread impact of menopause, most women still struggle to receive proper diagnosis, care, and treatment. This investment in both coverage and education is a critical step toward closing the healthcare gap that has left too many women without the support they need. Thank you, Governor, for being a partner in this: together, we&#8217;re ensuring California women get the care they deserve.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWomen\u2019s health care is a top priority for the California State Senate, especially as HR 1 will jeopardize health care access for millions across the state,\u201d\u00a0<strong>said Senate President Pro Tem Monique Lim\u00f3n (D-Santa Barbara).<\/strong>\u00a0\u201cMenopause care in particular is an often overlooked and under-resourced area of care despite impacting more than half of the population. I look forward to continuing my work with Assemblymember Bauer-Kahan and the Governor to ensure this budget proposal successfully improves access to menopause and perimenopause treatments,\u00a0as well as offers new educational opportunities for providers \u2014 helping millions of women in the Golden State.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMany women, especially women of color, lack information and access to menopause care \u2013 leaving them feeling vulnerable to misinformation and mistreatment,\u201d\u00a0<strong>said Jodi Hicks, President and CEO of Planned Parenthood Affiliates of California.<\/strong>\u00a0\u201cWomen must be supported and receive equitable health care access throughout their entire reproductive health journey and providers must be equipped to provide that care. This is a positive step forward on this critical, and too often neglected, issue.\u201d\n<\/p>\n<h2 dir=\"ltr\">California\u2019s leadership in health care affordability<\/h2>\n<p dir=\"ltr\">Since his\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/mclist.us7.list-manage.com\/track\/click?u=afffa58af0d1d42fee9a20e55&amp;id=d2368ddd73&amp;e=0a97a8055b\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/mclist.us7.list-manage.com\/track\/click?u%3Dafffa58af0d1d42fee9a20e55%26id%3Dd2368ddd73%26e%3D0a97a8055b&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1770174496356000&amp;usg=AOvVaw2o0uX9FABMJ06EuUqsBSiI\">first executive order<\/a>\u00a0in 2019, Governor Newsom has prioritized making health care more affordable to ensure that families do not have to pick between purchasing medications or having food on the table.<\/p>\n<p>Governor Newsom has since advanced significant efforts to address health care affordability and accessibility in California, including:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li dir=\"ltr\" aria-level=\"1\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\" role=\"presentation\">Signing\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/mclist.us7.list-manage.com\/track\/click?u=afffa58af0d1d42fee9a20e55&amp;id=a72f023903&amp;e=0a97a8055b\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/mclist.us7.list-manage.com\/track\/click?u%3Dafffa58af0d1d42fee9a20e55%26id%3Da72f023903%26e%3D0a97a8055b&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1770174496356000&amp;usg=AOvVaw3chx4cVFqakzdg2PmexDth\">SB 40<\/a>, capping consumer cost-sharing for insulin at $35 for a month-long supply.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li dir=\"ltr\" aria-level=\"1\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\" role=\"presentation\">Signing\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/mclist.us7.list-manage.com\/track\/click?u=afffa58af0d1d42fee9a20e55&amp;id=fda7076345&amp;e=0a97a8055b\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/mclist.us7.list-manage.com\/track\/click?u%3Dafffa58af0d1d42fee9a20e55%26id%3Dfda7076345%26e%3D0a97a8055b&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1770174496356000&amp;usg=AOvVaw1Y0n91whbEU4sEJvlQHGC2\">SB 41<\/a>, reducing prescription drug prices by regulating the practices of pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs), which negotiate prices between drug manufacturers, health care insurance providers, and pharmacies.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li dir=\"ltr\" aria-level=\"1\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\" role=\"presentation\">Launching\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/mclist.us7.list-manage.com\/track\/click?u=afffa58af0d1d42fee9a20e55&amp;id=3e076293e7&amp;e=0a97a8055b\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/mclist.us7.list-manage.com\/track\/click?u%3Dafffa58af0d1d42fee9a20e55%26id%3D3e076293e7%26e%3D0a97a8055b&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1770174496356000&amp;usg=AOvVaw0-NfWl59ceEYbYq7CBPbEX\">CalRx insulin<\/a>, making California the first and only state contracting for its own affordable insulin at just $11 a pen<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li dir=\"ltr\" aria-level=\"1\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\" role=\"presentation\">Announcing\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/mclist.us7.list-manage.com\/track\/click?u=afffa58af0d1d42fee9a20e55&amp;id=047912646a&amp;e=0a97a8055b\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/mclist.us7.list-manage.com\/track\/click?u%3Dafffa58af0d1d42fee9a20e55%26id%3D047912646a%26e%3D0a97a8055b&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1770174496356000&amp;usg=AOvVaw1cDMGWTEBrhE4Ca8ru3z_W\">$145.5 million in awards<\/a>\u00a0to organizations across California to support specialized, community-based services as part of the state\u2019s work to transform health care into a more effective, affordable, and accessible system.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li dir=\"ltr\" aria-level=\"1\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\" role=\"presentation\">Investing over\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/mclist.us7.list-manage.com\/track\/click?u=afffa58af0d1d42fee9a20e55&amp;id=b425bf26bd&amp;e=0a97a8055b\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/mclist.us7.list-manage.com\/track\/click?u%3Dafffa58af0d1d42fee9a20e55%26id%3Db425bf26bd%26e%3D0a97a8055b&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1770174496356000&amp;usg=AOvVaw3Vy23ZkK6UHo53jRaOKXyu\">$140 million<\/a>\u00a0to support Planned Parenthood health centers in California amid Trump\u2019s efforts to defund.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li dir=\"ltr\" aria-level=\"1\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\" role=\"presentation\">Announcing the availability of\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/mclist.us7.list-manage.com\/track\/click?u=afffa58af0d1d42fee9a20e55&amp;id=1325720cc9&amp;e=0a97a8055b\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/mclist.us7.list-manage.com\/track\/click?u%3Dafffa58af0d1d42fee9a20e55%26id%3D1325720cc9%26e%3D0a97a8055b&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1770174496356000&amp;usg=AOvVaw2I0RodrTplSRAK7Ut9mXdW\">lifesaving CalRx\u00ae Naloxone<\/a>\u00a0for all Californians at just $24 per carton.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li dir=\"ltr\" aria-level=\"1\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\" role=\"presentation\">Created the\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/mclist.us7.list-manage.com\/track\/click?u=afffa58af0d1d42fee9a20e55&amp;id=9d6764a637&amp;e=0a97a8055b\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/mclist.us7.list-manage.com\/track\/click?u%3Dafffa58af0d1d42fee9a20e55%26id%3D9d6764a637%26e%3D0a97a8055b&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1770174496356000&amp;usg=AOvVaw0MNxaJ5dAN-tuHkjTrT38V\">Office of Health Care Affordability<\/a>\u00a0to slow health care spending growth, promote high value system performance, and assess market consolidation.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>What you need to know:\u00a0Fulfilling a&#46;&#46;&#46;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6,16],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-78925","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-ca-local","category-health"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lapost.us\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/78925","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lapost.us\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lapost.us\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lapost.us\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lapost.us\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=78925"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/lapost.us\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/78925\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":78926,"href":"https:\/\/lapost.us\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/78925\/revisions\/78926"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lapost.us\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=78925"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lapost.us\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=78925"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lapost.us\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=78925"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}