The Brief

California has been preparing to fill a budget gap for gender-affirming care procedures after the federal government pulled the funds under the direction of President Donald Trump and Mehmet Oz, administrator of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services.

LAist crunched the numbers to see if the state has budgeted enough, and here’s what we found.

Youth on Medi-Cal bill $1 million yearly for hormones

People under 18 covered by Medi-Cal filed about $1 million in claims in 2025 for hormone replacement therapy and puberty blockers, according to data from California’s Department of Health Care Services. That accounted for about 4,000 claims.

Some providers that take trans youth patients on Medi-Cal, like Children’s Hospital Los Angeles’ trans youth clinic, closed last year, though many doctors still were able to write out prescriptions that lasted patients for months after that.

Some care remains covered 

Medi-Cal also covered 4,800 claims for about 1,500 Medi-Cal members under 18 in 2025 for “doctor visits, counseling, surgeries, speech therapy, and other services,” totaling $6.4 million. Gender-affirming surgeries are only recommended for minors in rare circumstances.

However, the restrictions in the federal Medicaid rule only affect puberty blockers, hormone replacement therapy and surgeries, according to health policy organization KFF, so services like mental health treatment would still be reimbursable with federal funds. The rule, which would take effect Oct. 13, also lets states pay for minors’ gender-affirming hormone treatments and surgeries themselves.

The state has already set aside two pots of money to close gaps in funding for gender-affirming healthcare services: a $30 million fund for uncompensated gender-affirming care and abortion services, and a $26 million trust fund specifically for trans healthcare.

While these funds were not established with the intent to backfill Medi-Cal provider reimbursements for trans youth care, California Health & Human Services Agency leaders have said they "are committed to ensuring all people have access to the medically necessary, evidence-based care that will allow them not only to survive, but thrive."

Advocates call for more state funding

In order to protect the previously approved funds from being redirected, advocates are calling on state lawmakers to set aside an additional $10 million in funding to ensure trans youth on Medi-Cal don't have any gaps in healthcare while officials come up with a permanent solution.

"California has made a commitment that transgender people will not be denied medically necessary health care because of who they are," Jennifer Chou, health policy director at LA LGBT Center, said in a statement. "Now is the moment to make sure that commitment means something."

Medi-Cal’s budget

The overall Medi-Cal program budget during this period was almost $200 billion, according to state data. Transgender youth health services, including mental health services, make up just 0.004% of the plan’s budget.

Medi-Cal administers both the federal Medicaid program and the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) under a Medicaid expansion allowed for by the Affordable Care Act.

“The federal rule applies solely to federal Medicaid and CHIP funding; California will determine any adjustments needed to align with federal requirements,” California Department of Health Care Services spokesperson Anthony Cava said in a statement. “California remains committed to safeguarding access to medically necessary care for Medi-Cal members, including gender-affirming care.”

Medi-Cal agencies like L.A. Care have stated that they are continuing to cover gender-affirming care services.

Issues may still arise

Trans healthcare advocates have noted that some issues may arise due to providers who are unsure how the new rules apply.

The California Legislative LGBTQ Caucus has also said it’s bracing for future budget years to be “even more challenging as federal funding cuts and attacks on targeted investments to marginalized communities continue to threaten critical services.”

Meanwhile, California Attorney General Rob Bonta has denounced the restrictions on federal funding since they were first floated last year. A lawsuit has not yet been announced, but a spokesperson for his office told LAist, “We are closely reviewing the final rule.”

It’s taken over a decade and $1.3 billion, but Hollywood Burbank’s new terminal is finally ready for action. On Tuesday, Oct. 13, the first passengers will be taking off and arriving at the brand-new structure.

Visitors note: The new terminal entrance has moved from Thornton Avenue to the intersection of Winona Avenue and Hollywood Way. There’s also a central security checkpoint and an indoor baggage claim.

The project stemmed from Burbank’s Measure B, passed in 2016.

LAist reporter Cato Hernandez got a sneak peek inside the building last week and reported on the scope and the thinking behind the decor.

William Contreras hit a tying homer in the fifth and singled home the go-ahead run an inning later as the Milwaukee Brewers defeated the Los Angeles Dodgers 7-4 on Monday in Game 2 of the National League Championship Series.

Four relievers combined to retire the last 15 Dodgers batters in order as the Brewers took a 2-0 lead over the two-time defending World Series champions in this best-of-seven series, which heads to Los Angeles for Game 3 on Wednesday.

The Brewers are chasing their second pennant and first in the NL. They made their lone World Series appearance in 1982, when they were in the American League.

Los Angeles is trying to become the first NL team to win three straight World Series. The Dodgers last rallied from a 2-0 deficit to win a series in 2020, when they beat the Atlanta Braves in a seven-game NLCS before going on to win the World Series.

The Dodgers will need more punch from their lineup to have a chance at getting back to the Fall Classic. They mustered just three hits Monday and went 0 for 4 with runners in scoring position to drop to 2 for 26 in those situations this postseason.

Los Angeles couldn’t even get a boost from Yoshinobu Yamamoto, who entered 8-1 with a 2.14 ERA in 11 career playoff appearances. Yamamoto lasted just 2 2/3 innings for his shortest postseason start.

The Dodgers took the lead on three occasions in the first five innings. Milwaukee responded each time, the last coming when Contreras tied the game with a 436-foot homer to center off Kris Bubic in the fifth.

That turned the game into a battle of the bullpens, where the Brewers again had the edge.

Dustin May, JoJo Romero, Abner Uribe and Aaron Ashby combined to shut down the Dodgers after Logan Henderson’s early exit.

The score was tied 4-all when Milwaukee’s David Hamilton was hit by a pitch from Brock Stewart to lead off the sixth. Stewart attempted a pickoff throw that went off the glove of first baseman Freddie Freeman and into foul territory for an error, advancing Hamilton to second.

After Jackson Chourio grounded out, the right-handed Stewart walked the left-handed-hitting Brice Turang to face the right-handed Contreras, who had homered in his previous plate appearance.

Contreras singled to left this time to bring home Hamilton with the go-ahead run.

Turang and Jake Bauers added RBI singles in the eighth to extend Milwaukee’s lead.

Neither starter lasts long

The anticipated pitchers’ duel between Yamamoto and Henderson didn’t work out according to plan.

In three previous playoff starts following Dodgers losses, Yamamoto had gone 3-0 with a 1.23 ERA. When he faced the Brewers in last year’s NLCS, he threw the first playoff complete game since Justin Verlander did it in 2017.

This time, Yamamoto couldn’t even make it out of the third inning before leaving with the Dodgers behind 3-2.

Henderson entered Monday having not allowed more than three runs in any of his 24 career starts (including the postseason). That streak ended when he allowed four runs over four innings.

Because Henderson committed two errors — matching his previous career total — only two of the runs were earned.

Milwaukee trailed 2-1 in the third when Bauers capped a 12-pitch plate appearance by taking a 3-2 offering in the dirt to load the bases with a walk. Christian Yelich followed by lining a single up the middle that brought home two runs and knocked Yamamoto out of the game.

Los Angeles bailed out Yamamoto by scoring twice in the fifth.

After Kyle Tucker hit a leadoff double, Tommy Edman sacrificed him to third. Henderson fielded the bunt and made a wild throw to first, enabling Tucker to score and moving Edman to second.

Edman advanced to third when Mookie Betts grounded out, and scored on Freeman’s sacrifice fly.

Henderson also had made a wild throw to first on a pickoff attempt in the third inning that allowed Edman to score from third.

Up next

Robert Gasser (5-5, 3.87 ERA) is expected to start for Milwaukee in Game 3. Gasser allowed one run over five innings when the Brewers won 3-1 at San Diego to clinch their NL Division Series.

The Dodgers hadn’t announced their Game 3 starting pitcher.

Actor and disability rights advocate RJ Mitte, who brought a lifetime of experience with cerebral palsy to fictional family struggles in an essential role on “Breaking Bad,” died Monday at age 34, authorities and his representatives said.

Cameron County Justice of the Peace Cyndi Hinojosa told The Associated Press she declared Mitte dead at about 1:30 p.m. at what she believed was his home in Brownsville, Texas. She said she was unable to provide a cause, but an autopsy will be performed.

Mitte played Walter White Jr., the son of Bryan Cranston’s chemistry teacher-turned-meth dealer Walter White on nearly every episode of the five seasons of the AMC show, which recently ranked as the best of the 21st century in a New York Times poll.

Diagnosed at age 3, Mitte told the AP in 2014 that his disability and the surrounding struggles with physical therapy, family problems and exorbitant medical bills — all key subjects on the show — made him better at his job.“You develop a different mentality and you develop a different look at how the world sees you and how you see the world,” he said. “You’re able to use that. And I think it’s an asset instead of something that would hinder.”

Mitte was born and raised in Jackson, Mississippi.

He landed small guest roles on sitcoms after moving to Los Angeles to act in 2006. Like his character, he was in his mid-teens when he began his work on “Breaking Bad,” starting in 2007. The show ran from 2008 to 2013.

“Mitte brought authenticity to the role and built a platform on disability awareness and inclusion,” the actor’s representatives said in a statement announcing his death. The statement said he used “his platform to challenge stereotypes and promote greater representation.”

His later credits included the ABC Family series “Switched at Birth” and the superhero satire series “Guardians of Justice.”

He was also a producer of several independent films.

As an advocate, he served as an ambassador for United Cerebral Palsy and Shriners Children’s. He was also president of his own Mitte Foundation supporting philanthropic and community initiatives around disabilities.