L.A. County sues to block measure to create L.A. health department

Los Angeles County filed suit Tuesday to remove from the ballot a measure that would strip the city of Los Angeles from the county health department’s jurisdiction and require the city to create its own department.

The suit argues that the ballot measure, set to appear before voters in June, is invalid because it seeks to take away administrative decision-making authority that is the purview of the county and the city, and that it is preempted by state law.

On Monday, the Los Angeles City Council filed its own suit to stop the measure resting on similar arguments.

The ballot measure is supported by the AIDS Healthcare Foundation, which argues that the county health department is a bloated bureaucracy that does not give Los Angeles residents their fair share of services. The foundation has a contentious relationship with the county over accusations that the foundation over-billed for services it was providing to poor people who have HIV or AIDS.

The county has provided health services for the city for nearly half a century, and argues that it provides superior care at lower costs. Among the services provided are immunizations, restaurant grades and ocean water-quality monitoring.

Local leaders have also argued that the ballot measure’s structure will endanger local residents. If approved, the city has 120 days to create its own health department and would be forbidden to contract with the county for such services.

But city officials say that it would take one to two years to create a city health department, leaving a coverage lag, and that they would be unable to provide as many services as the county does, and may have to raise taxes or cut policing to fund it.

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Twitter: @LATSeema

seema.mehta@latimes.com