LOS ANGELES — Los Angeles County is moving forward with implementation of Measure ER, a voter-approved half-cent sales tax intended to protect the county’s health care system from expected cuts in federal funding.
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What you need to know
- Measure ER takes effect Oct. 1 and imposes a half-cent sales tax across Los Angeles County to help fund health care services
- The measure was narrowly approved by voters in June and is intended to offset billions of dollars in expected cuts to federal health care funding
- 45 percent of revenue goes to community health clinics, and another 22 percent goes to county hospitals and clinics
- Some city leaders oppose the tax, arguing that it increases costs for residents and offers little guarantee that communities will receive funding proportional to their payments
The tax, which narrowly passed in June, will take effect on October 1 and remain in effect until 2031. County leaders approved its implementation earlier this week, saying the additional revenue was needed to offset billions of dollars in expected cuts to Medi-Cal and Medicaid funding resulting from President Donald Trump’s spending and tax law passed by Congress last year.
For frontline healthcare providers, funding can’t come soon enough.
Jim Mangia, CEO of St. John’s Community Health, said the organization, which operates 28 clinics across Southern California and serves more than 150,000 patients, has already seen the impact of federal health care cuts.
“What you mean by these cuts is diabetics who can’t get their insulin and their diabetes medications,” Mangia said. “You’re talking about cancer patients who can’t continue their chemotherapy. We’re talking about some very serious effects.”
Under Measure ER, 45% of revenue goes directly to community health clinics like St. John’s Community Health, while 22% goes to county hospitals and clinics.
The remaining funds will support a range of health services, including public health programs, safety net hospitals, family planning, school health programs, medical school enrollment assistance, prison health care, home health services, and the Pasadena and Long Beach public health departments.
Not everyone supports the new tax.
La Verne Mayor Tim Hepburn said many smaller cities in Los Angeles County fear the increase will further burden residents already struggling with higher everyday costs.
“Look at gas and all these additional fees,” Hepburn said. “There’s a half-cent sales tax on top of that, and some of our residents barely get by.”
Starting October 1, shoppers across Los Angeles County will pay an additional half cent in sales tax on taxable purchases.
In the city of Los Angeles, the sales tax rate will increase from 9.75% to 10.25%. Most other cities in the county will see tax rates increase from 10.5% to 11%, while Lancaster and Palmdale, which already have the highest sales tax rates in the county, will increase to 11.75%.
Hepburn also questioned whether smaller cities would receive a fair share of their residents’ income.
“It just creates a general sales tax that allows the county to spend the funds broadly,” he said. “There is no guarantee that the revenue generated in the city of La Verne … what are we going to get out of it?”
Los Angeles County expects to begin distributing Measure ER funds in January 2027, when another round of federal health care funding cuts is set to take effect.
https://spectrumlocalnews.com/ca/california/politics/2026/07/10/where-la-county-s-measure-er-money-will-go
