SACRAMENTO — James Gomez, head of the state’s largest organization of long-term care professionals, has received a 2014 Joe Warner Patient Advocacy Award for his work on behalf of the elderly and people with disabilities.

CEO/president of the California Association of Health Facilities www.cahf.org, which represents most of the skilled-nursing facilities and intermediate-care facilities for developmentally disabled people in the state, Gomez received the Warner Award from the American Health Care Association/National Center for Assisted Living at a May 20 ceremony in Washington.

In a video message to more than 400 long-term care professionals attending the AHCA/NCAL Congressional Briefing, May 20-21, Rep. Kevin McCarthy of Bakersfield said, “This award honors those who support and advocate for the frail, elderly and disabled. And Jim has done precisely that.”

Gomez and two other 2014 Warner Award recipients from other states have worked diligently to educate members of Congress about the needs of long-term care patients, while advancing the quality of care in long-term care facilities.

Gomez became head of the nonprofit California Association of Health Facilities (CAHF) in 2002, directing advocacy and policy for the organization’s 1,300 member facilities. He also oversees CAHF’s educational branch, the Quality Care Health Foundations, which provides specialized training for nursing-home administrators, nurses and other long-term care professionals.

Before coming to CAHF, he was COO of CalPERS, the $160-billion state employee retirement system. He also served as director of the California Department of Corrections, where he oversaw 42,000 employees and an annual budget of nearly $3.8 billion.