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Therapists, families urge Santa Clara County to spare California Children’s Services positions amid cuts
Summary
Staff and families of California Children’s Services urged the Board of Supervisors to preserve specialized physical and occupational therapist positions that serve more than 930 county children, saying proposed deletions would reduce access to medically necessary services.
Dozens of therapists and family advocates told the Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors on Aug. 12 that planned budget cuts to California Children’s Services will harm hundreds of children who rely on specialized therapy.
At a public-comment block dedicated to items not on the agenda, California Children’s Services clinicians from multiple disciplines described how the county’s proposed deletions — including several part-time Physical Therapist II positions slated for November — would shrink institutional expertise and leave complex patients without adequate care. Paul (occupational therapist, California Children’s Services) said CCS serves “930 plus families, your constituents, who will be directly impacted by the budget cuts to our program.”
Why it matters: CCS provides medically necessary therapy to children from birth to 21 with chronic neuromuscular and developmental conditions. Speakers warned that reductions would increase long-term costs by worsening outcomes and creating higher medical need later.
Details and debate: Part-time and specialty positions cited by staff include multiple Physical Therapist II roles with 5–25 years’ county experience. Several speakers urged the board to consider saving open full‑time positions rather than deleting experienced part‑time roles. Kellen Curtis Amelo (physical therapist) asked the board to “consider taking the open full time physical therapist code instead of the part time code slated for deletion,” saying the program already faces hiring freezes and recent cutbacks.
The presenters emphasized that CCS funding mixes state, county and billable service revenue and is not solely general fund dependent, and they described the specialized training and mentoring role of senior therapists. Caitlin Zook (occupational therapist) summarized the workforce argument: “Reducing the quality of our services undermines the shared mission and disregards the needs of those who rely on us the most.”
What’s next: Speakers asked the board to prioritize equity and family‑centered care when finalizing the budget and to explore alternatives to deleting experienced staff codes. The board did not take an immediate vote on the CCS staffing requests during this meeting; the county’s broader budget discussions were referenced by staff in subsequent presentations.
