Latest California Healthline Stories
Oversight Hearing Examines CBAS Concerns
A member of the Assembly Committee for Aging and Long-Term Care asked that the state Legislative Counsel look into variation in eligibility approvals for the state’s new adult day care program.
That was one of many concerns raised during an Assembly oversight hearing yesterday examining the state’s pending Oct. 1 implementation of much of its Community Based Adult Services program.
Toby Douglas, director of the Department of Health Care Services, which is overseeing implementation of the CBAS program, answered a number of questions from legislators about the state’s new program designed as part of a settlement of a lawsuit challenging the state’s plans following elimination of the Adult Day Health Care program.
Assembly Hearing Raises Questions About Adult Day Care Transition
An Assembly hearing today will examine the state’s planned Oct. 1 transition from Adult Day Health Care to the Community Based Adult Services program.
A growing chorus of concerns has been raised about the new program for seniors and disabled so it’s important to examine plans closely before the transition begins, said Assembly member Mariko Yamada (D-Davis).
“Eliminating ADHC was a painful 2011 budget action taken with the understanding that strategic replacement services for some of our state’s most vulnerable adults would continue,” Yamada said. “Despite a legal agreement establishing a standard for these replacement services, many of our constituents report continued problems in timely adjudication of appeals and access to care.”
Can Health Policy Contribute to Drop in Crime Rate?
Two significant changes in California’s health system — federal reform and realignment of state and county responsibilities for government health programs — offer new opportunities to improve the way things work in California on many fronts, including the criminal justice system, according to some. We asked experts to explain how.
Exchange Considers Community Grants for Outreach
Stakeholders and board members mapped out marketing strategies focusing on community outreach for California’s new Health Benefit Exchange at a board meeting this week in Sacramento.
Board members realize new rules and opportunities coming into play in 2014 as part of national health reform may be confusing for many Californians and they hope to make the process as simple and straightforward as possible.
The exchange’s staff is planning ways to use community-based grants to educate Californians on how and where to sign up for health care. The exchange is paying particular attention to communicating with populations it considers hard to reach, including rural and lower income Californians, according to Juli Baker, chief technology officer for the exchange.
MRMIB Balks at Oct. 1 Deadline to Start HF Notices
Managed Risk Medical Insurance Board officials yesterday expressed reluctance and worry over the state’s plan to move 415,000 children out of the Healthy Families program and into Medi-Cal managed care plans on a single day — Jan. 1, 2013.
Because notices of the change would need to be sent 90 days prior to the big shift, letters would need to be mailed to beneficiaries in a little more than a week, by Oct. 1.
That plan moves too many children too quickly, said board member Richard Figueroa.
Forum Examines Specifics of Bending the Cost Curve
A forum organized by a Massachusetts health policy research institute explored ways California policymakers and health care providers can combat the spiraling costs of health care ranging from adhering to prescription drug regimens to avoiding unnecessary hospitalizations.
DHCS Says State Is Ready for Adult Day Care Transition
Advocates for seniors and the disabled filed a motion on Saturday asking a U.S. District Court judge in San Francisco to intervene in some implementation details of the settlement agreement it signed eight months ago with the Department of Health Care Services.
State officials yesterday answered some of the questions about the Oct. 1 implementation of the Community Based Adult Services program.
Some advocates worried about confusion around the launch of the CBAS program since the state is holding training sessions for the CBAS changeover in October for both health plans and physicians.
The Exchange by Any Other Name
Now there are four.
At yesterday’s meeting of the state’s Health Benefit Exchange board, Chris Kelly, the exchange’s senior advisor for marketing and outreach, presented the four finalists in the project to pick a new name for the exchange — the name that will be used to market the exchange’s choices and services.
“We brought forward about 13 names last time [at the Aug. 23 board meeting],” Kelly said, “including Wellquest and, of course, Avocado — that is still a crowd favorite.”
Kelly prefaced his presentation by reiterating that each proposed name includes a marketing package with a unique logo and tagline — “a voice of its own,” as Kelly put it.
California Could Lose $61B in Medicare Pay. Does it Matter?
A new analysis projects the impact of the Affordable Care Act’s Medicare cuts on California: at least $61 billion over a decade. It’s a striking figure — but the effect on patients and providers is still unclear.
Motion Could Delay Implementation
A court motion filed Saturday challenging the state’s implementation of a new program for adult day services raises a number of concerns about how the new legal hurdle may affect timing and appeals in the new Community Based Adult Services program.
One of the main issues revolves around the fate of approximately 2,400 former Medi-Cal beneficiaries of Adult Day Health Care services. Those frail, elderly and disabled people had been denied eligibility to the replacement CBAS program. Many of them had been denied eligibility after earlier being approved for it.
According to Elissa Gershon, attorney for Disability Rights California which filed the motion Saturday in U.S. District Court in San Francisco, there are approximately 2,200 appeals of eligibility still outstanding, and roughly another 200 who have had a hearing but are still awaiting a decision.