Legislation


AB 942 – California

Status: Inactive / Dead
Year Introduced: 2021
Link: https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/billNavClient.xhtml?bill_id=202120220AB942

Specialty mental health services and substance use disorder treatment.
(1) Existing law establishes the Medi-Cal program, which is administered by the State Department of Health Care Services, under which qualified low-income individuals receive health care services, including mental health and substance use disorder services, pursuant to a schedule of benefits. The Medi-Cal program is, in part, governed and funded by federal Medicaid program provisions.
Under existing law, for individuals 21 years of age and older, a service is “medically necessary” if it is reasonable and necessary to protect life, to prevent significant illness or significant disability, or to alleviate severe pain. Existing law provides that for individuals under 21 years of age, “medically necessary” or “medical necessity” standards are governed by the definition in federal law.
This bill would provide that the above-specified medical necessity standards do not preclude coverage for, and reimbursement of, a clinically appropriate and covered mental health or substance use disorder assessment, screening, or treatment service before a provider renders a diagnosis.
(2) For purposes of the Medi-Cal program, behavioral health services, which encompass specialty mental health services and substance use disorder treatment are provided under the Medi-Cal Specialty Mental Health Services Program, the Drug Medi-Cal Treatment Program, and the Drug Medi-Cal organized delivery system, respectively. Under existing law, specialty mental health services and substance use disorder treatment are funded through certified public expenditures. Existing law requires the department to implement managed mental health care for purposes of delivering specialty mental health services to Medi-Cal beneficiaries through contracts with county mental health plans.
Existing law, the Medi-Cal 2020 Demonstration Project Act, requires the department to implement specified components of a Medi-Cal demonstration project, including the Global Payment Program, the Whole Person Care pilot program, and the Dental Transformation Initiative, consistent with the Special Terms and Conditions approved by the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. Pursuant to existing law, the department has created a multiyear initiative, the California Advancing and Innovating Medi-Cal initiative, for purposes of building upon the outcomes of various Medi-Cal pilots and demonstration projects, including the Medi-Cal 2020 demonstration project.
This bill would require the department to establish, implement, and administer the Behavioral Health Quality Improvement Program to assist county mental health plans and counties that administer the Drug Medi-Cal Treatment Program or the Drug Medi-Cal organized delivery system for purposes of preparing those entities for implementation of the behavioral health components included in the California Advancing and Innovating Medi-Cal initiative, and would establish in the State Treasury the Behavioral Health Quality Improvement Account to fund those efforts. The bill would require the department to determine the methodology and distribution of funds appropriated to those entities. The bill would authorize the department to implement these provisions by various means, including provider bulletin, without taking regulatory action, and to enter into contracts that would be exempt from specified provisions of state contracting requirements. The bill would condition the implementation of these provisions to the extent that the department determines that federal financial participation is not jeopardized.
(3) Existing law provides that any county, political subdivision of the state, or other governmental entity in the state may elect to transfer funds in the form of cash or loans to the department in support of the Medi-Cal program, and provides the department discretion to accept or not accept any elective transfer from a county, political subdivision, or other governmental entity for obtaining federal financial participation. Pursuant to this provision, existing law authorizes the Director of Health Care Services to maximize federal financial participation to provide access to services provided by hospitals that are not reimbursed by certified public expenditure by authorizing the use of intergovernmental transfers to fund the nonfederal share of supplemental payments as permitted under federal law, and requires the department to establish various intergovernmental transfer programs, including the Nondesignated Public Hospital Intergovernmental Transfer Program.
For purposes of the Medi-Cal Specialty Mental Health Services Program, the Drug Medi-Cal Treatment Program, and the Drug Medi-Cal organized delivery system, this bill would require the department to design and implement an intergovernmental transfer program to fund the nonfederal share of supplemental payments and to replace claiming based on certified public expenditures. The bill would require each transferring entity, upon providing any intergovernmental transfer of funds, to certify that the transferred funds qualify for federal financial participation, and would provide that participation in the intergovernmental transfer program is voluntary. The bill would prohibit the director from implementing an intergovernmental transfer program if they determine that the payments do not comply with federal Medicaid program requirements, and would authorize the director to adjust payments to comply with those federal requirements. The bill would require the department to obtain federal approvals and federal matching funds, to implement these provisions by various means, including policy letters, and, by January 1, 2023, and annually thereafter, to provide a status update on the implementation of these provisions.


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