Bill Text: CA SR104 | 2025-2026 | Regular Session | Enrolled
Bill Title: Relative to aging and chronic disease policy.
Sponsorship: Partisan Bill (Democrat 2)
Status: (Passed) 2026-06-08 - Read. Adopted. (Ayes 36. Noes 0.) [SR104 Detail]
Download: California-2025-SR104-Enrolled.html
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Enrolled
June 10, 2026 |
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Passed
IN
Senate
June 08, 2026 |
CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE—
2025–2026 REGULAR SESSION
Senate Resolution
No. 104
| Introduced by Senator Becker (Coauthor: Senator Weber Pierson) |
April 27, 2026 |
Relative to aging and chronic disease policy.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
SR 104, Becker.
Digest Key
Bill Text
WHEREAS, Aging is the primary driver of chronic diseases that impair and kill millions of Americans each year; and
WHEREAS, An overwhelming majority of Americans die of chronic diseases, typically after years of suffering and large expenditures of health care resources, which are driven by the underlying process of biological aging; and
WHEREAS, The risk of developing chronic diseases rises exponentially with age, making chronological age the primary risk factor for the top nine causes of nonaccidental death in the United States, which include heart disease, cancer, COVID-19, stroke, respiratory illnesses, Alzheimer’s, diabetes, and kidney disorders; and
WHEREAS, Collectively, these conditions cause the deaths of millions of Americans each year and impose enormous financial burdens on patients, their families, and our health care systems; and
WHEREAS, More than 843,000 Americans die of heart disease or stroke every year, costing the health care system $233.3 billion, and cancers cause another 600,000 annual deaths with costs expected to exceed $240 billion by 2030. Medical costs and lost productivity due to diabetes exceed $413 billion, and chronic health conditions require ongoing medical care and treatment, incurring $3.7 trillion in annual health care spending; and
WHEREAS, During the past century, the average lifespan in the United States increased by more than 30 years due in large part to advances in medical care and technology, yet our health span, meaning the amount of time we live free of disease, has risen modestly, and as a result, although we are living longer, we spend more years, and a growing proportion of our lives, in poor health, with the average American living 15 years with one or more serious illnesses; and
WHEREAS, As the proportion of older adults in California continues to grow, the impact of aging on the health of Californians and the demands placed on our state’s health care system will only become greater with time; and
WHEREAS, Our current paradigm of chronic medical care is unsustainable because it focuses on mitigating the progression of individual chronic diseases after they have arisen with far less effort devoted to effectively curing or preventing these illnesses, which leads to escalating health care costs, impaired quality of life for patients, and increased use of health care resources; and
WHEREAS, Aging itself has long been considered inevitable and unalterable, and this assumption is reflected in our national and state funding priorities, with a disproportionately small share of biomedical research dedicated to the study of aging biology; and
WHEREAS, California is home to a globally recognized biotechnology and life sciences industry dedicated to developing therapeutics to target the root causes of aging and chronic disease; and
WHEREAS, Promoting the development and use of longevity medicines and interventions has the potential to improve individual health and autonomy, reduce health care costs, and generate substantial social and economic gains for California residents; and
WHEREAS, Healthy aging benefits not only older individuals but also governments, insurers, employers, investors, and entrepreneurs, making it an essential policy area for the future of health care and society in California; now, therefore, be it
Resolved by the Senate of the State of California, That the Senate supports targeting the biological processes of aging as a strategy to prevent or delay the onset of chronic disease; and be it further
Resolved, That the State of California should invest in research grants, public-private partnerships, and regulatory frameworks that support the development of therapies that slow, prevent, or reverse aspects of biological aging; and be it further
Resolved, That the State Department of Public Health and California Department of Aging are encouraged to incorporate the science of aging into chronic disease prevention and healthy aging strategies, including education, outreach, and demonstration programs; and be it further
Resolved, That the Senate encourages collaboration between California’s academic research institutions, health plans, and biotechnology firms to pilot innovative aging interventions that improve health span and reduce long-term care costs; and be it further
Resolved, That the Secretary of the Senate transmit copies of this resolution to the office of the Governor, the State Department of Public Health, the California Department of Aging, relevant policy committees of the Legislature, and the author for appropriate distribution.
