Hollywood workers need CalCare. Our industry does, too.

Hollywood’s union health plans are at a breaking point.

The Dailies Newsletter emailed the following story to their 150,000+ subscribers on March 4th, 2026:

“Closeup: The WGA’s health fund is running on fumes…

In a recent memo, the Writers Guild of America warned members that its health plan will burn through reserves before 2029 at the current rate. Fewer writers working and more relying on backup coverage has added an extra $37M in costs onto the health plan in 2025, and the fund has been running a deficit every year since 2022. This all comes as guild-studio talks are less than two weeks away.

The fund is getting hit from all sides: The industry contraction has left more writers out of work and relying on backup coverage, the 2023 strike wore down reserves, and healthcare costs keep outpacing revenue. On top of that, employer contributions are capped at $250K per project, a limit the WGA says studios have refused to meaningfully raise in five straight negotiations. Writers have tried to pick up the slack by forgoing minimum pay increases totaling $64M annually, but it hasn't been enough.

The AMPTP reportedly has a fix in mind: massive cash infusions into guild health and pension funds in exchange for five-year contracts instead of the standard three. The guilds need the money, but locking in for two extra years means giving up negotiating leverage in an industry that's changing fast. The WGA hasn't said where it stands yet, and over at the DGA, newly elected President Christopher Nolan has called the idea "inappropriate."

Looking ahead… AI has gotten most of the attention heading into this bargaining cycle, but health and pension funding is quietly becoming the issue that could define it. The DGA and SAG-AFTRA are staring down similar deficits, which means this isn't just a WGA problem, it's an industry-wide one. Negotiations kick off March 16.”

There is a solution to this ever-worsening crisis: CalCare.

As Hollywood laborers, we know what it’s like to live in fear of illness or injury, or to have necessary medical treatments denied, changed, or delayed by insurance companies that are financially motivated to provide as little care as possible. And even with so-called "Cadillac" union health insurance, too many union members across our industry have struggled or failed to meet minimum earnings thresholds to qualify for their health plans, especially since the 2023 strikes.

Precious bargaining power is wasted on increasingly expensive health insurance during union contract negotiations, and even when health care is not a priority it is still a bargaining tool wielded by the AMPTP against workers, as more union and non-union workers across our industry lose their insurance benefits the longer a strike continues.

Furthermore, Los Angeles is experiencing an existential exodus of TV, film, and commercial production to states — and countries — with lower labor costs. What drives California labor cost inflation? Our skyrocketing private insurance plans. Why are multinational corporations like Disney, Amazon, Apple, and Netflix shooting films and TV shows in Canada, New Zealand, Australia, Hungary, Romania, Malta, Ireland, and the United Kingdom? Because they do not have to contribute to bloated union health insurance plans. America is the only developed country without affordable and universal health care.

Simply put, it's cheaper for companies to film in countries that take care of their citizens. 

Beyond our industry, the federal government just defunded Medicaid, stripping as many as 20 million Americans of their (privately-administrated) health care. 3.2 million Californians currently do not have any health insurance, and 12 million more are under-insured, meaning they cannot afford their copays and deductibles. More than 15 million Californians, or 40% of the state’s population, are already enrolled in Medi-Cal, the state’s version of Medicaid, which offers free health care coverage to low-income residents. And yet Americans use significantly less health care services than people in other industrialized countries — including physician visits and hospital admissions — yet spending is greater due to higher prices. Despite higher spending, people in the United States have worse health outcomes, including shorter life expectancy and greater prevalence of chronic conditions.

Our current for-profit, employer-sponsored health insurance system is bad for union power, bad for keeping productions in Los Angeles, bad for workers, and bad for our health.