HHS Distributes $6.2M in Grants To Boost Enrollment in Medi-Cal
On Tuesday, HHS announced the distribution of nearly $32 million in grants to help enroll children in Medicaid and the Children's Health Insurance Program, $6.2 million of which went to several California organizations, KPCC's "KPCC News" reports.
Medi-Cal is California's Medicaid program (O'Neill, "KPCC News," KPCC, 7/2).
Funding Details
The funding was provided through the Affordable Care Act and the latest reauthorization of CHIP (Baker, "Healthwatch," The Hill, 7/2).
HHS distributed the money to groups in 22 states, including:
- State agencies;
- Community health centers;
- School-based groups; and
- Not-for-profit organizations
The announcement follows an Associated Press analysis of Urban Institute data finding that only 5.3 million individuals live in states that have opted to expand Medicaid under the ACA, significantly less than the 8 million new beneficiaries that the Congressional Budget Office estimated for 2014 (Daly, Modern Healthcare, 7/2).
Details of California Grants
In California, the funding will be used to help enroll children who:
- Already are eligible for Medi-Cal coverage; or
- Will become eligible for coverage when the state expands Medi-Cal on Jan. 1, 2014 ("KPCC News," KPCC, 7/2).
HHS awarded grants ranging from about $190,000 to just under $1 million to nine California organizations:
- Catholic Charities of California, which received $999,956;
- Family Health Centers of San Diego, which received $993,472;
- L.A. Unified School District, which received $974,929;
- Alameda County Social Services Agency, which received $877,750;
- Northeast Valley Health Corporation, which received $796,258;
- Tides Center - California Coverage & Health Initiatives, which received $750,900;
- United American Indian Involvement, which received $313,422;
- Nevada County Superintendent of Schools, which received $284,465; and
- Lake County Tribal Health Consortium, which received $192,881 ("KPCC News," KPCC, 7/2).