Los Angeles voters will have the opportunity to decide the future of a proposed ordinance that aims to limit the annual compensation of healthcare executives to $450,000. The Los Angeles City Council unanimously voted to include this initiative on the ballot for the March 5 election.
During the council meeting, Councilman John Lee recused himself from the vote due to his involvement with a healthcare facilities board. Councilwoman Monica Rodriguez and Councilman Curren Price were absent from the meeting.
The initiative, put forth by the Service Employees International Union Healthcare Workers West (SEIU-UHW), argues that the current compensation of healthcare executives is often excessive and inconsistent with the goal of providing affordable and high-quality medical care for all. If passed, the ordinance would also affect healthcare administrative professionals with executive or administrative duties in privately owned facilities within Los Angeles.
SEIU-UHW maintains that hospital and healthcare facilities can still attract and retain effective executive leadership with salaries below the $450,000 mark, which is the current annual salary of the President of the United States.
The initiative petition was submitted by SEIU-UHW in February and met the required number of signatures to be considered by the City Council. Pursuant to the city charter section 452, the council must take action within 20 days, which includes adopting the proposed ordinance, calling for a special election, or submitting the proposal to a vote in the next regular city or statewide election.
According to the clerk’s office, holding a special election would be the most expensive option, estimated to cost approximately $28.7 million.
The Hospital Association of Southern California, representing 176 member hospitals and 31 health systems, sent a letter to the council expressing their preference for the proposed ordinance to be decided by voters rather than being adopted without public input. The association highlighted concerns that the ordinance would target certain hospitals while excluding others, as well as hospitals in neighboring communities.
“This exclusionary approach will create an uneven environment and impede the ability of targeted hospitals to retain and recruit top talent in the city of Los Angeles,” stated the letter.
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