Bill Text: CA AB396 | 2011-2012 | Regular Session | Amended

NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft

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Bill Title: Medi-Cal: juvenile inmates.

Spectrum: Moderate Partisan Bill (Democrat 4-1)

Status: (Passed) 2011-10-02 - Chaptered by Secretary of State - Chapter 394, Statutes of 2011. [AB396 Detail]

Download: California-2011-AB396-Amended.html

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BILL NUMBER: AB 396	AMENDED
	BILL TEXT

	AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY  MARCH 30, 2011

INTRODUCED BY   Assembly Member Mitchell

                        FEBRUARY 14, 2011

   An act to add Section 14053.8 to the Welfare and Institutions
Code, relating to Medi-Cal.


	LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


   AB 396, as amended, Mitchell. Medi-Cal: juvenile detention
facilities.
   Existing law provides for 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.
The Medi-Cal program is, in part, governed and funded by federal
Medicaid provisions. Existing federal law, with certain exceptions,
 does not provide for payments with respect to care or
services for   excludes federal financial participation
for medical care provided to  any individual who is an inmate in
a public institution  . In conformity with that federal
provision  ,  and  existing state law suspends
Medi-Cal benefits  , for a specified period of time,  to an
individual under 21 years of age who is an inmate of a public
institution.
   Existing law authorizes the Department of Corrections and
Rehabilitation and the State Department of Health Care Services, to
the extent that federal participation is not jeopardized and federal
approval is obtained, to develop a process for the provision of
inpatient hospital services to inmates who would otherwise be
eligible for Medi-Cal, but for their institutional status as inmates.
Existing law also  permits   authorizes  ,
to the extent federal financial participation is available, the
State Department of Health Care Services to provide Medi-Cal
eligibility and reimbursement for inpatient hospital services to
inmates, as defined.
   This bill would additionally require the State Department of
Health Care Services to develop a process to  maximize
federal financial participation for the health care services provided
by counties to juveniles in their custody who would otherwise be
eligible for Medi-Cal   allow counties to receive any
available federal financial participation for health care services
provided to juvenile detainees who are admitted as inpatients in a
medical institution  . The bill would require the department to
consult with counties in the development of this process, and would
require the department to seek  all   any 
federal approvals necessary to implement the process. The bill would
also limit application of this process to counties that elect to
voluntarily provide the nonfederal share of expenditures for health
care services, and would require that the federal financial
participation associated with services provided pursuant to the
process be paid to the participating counties.  The bill 
 would provide that these provisions shall be implemented only to
the extent that any necessary federal approval is obtained and
existing levels of federal financial participation are not
jeopardized.  The bill would make related findings and
declarations.
   Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes.
State-mandated local program: no.


THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:

  SECTION 1.  The Legislature finds and declares all of the
following: 
   (a) Counties provide health care services to juvenile offenders
committed to their custody, including inpatient hospital services,
for which federal financial participation may be available. 

   (a) Federal financial participation may be available for counties
that provide health care services to juvenile detainees while the
juveniles are admitted as patients in a medical institution. 
   (b) Current law provides that an individual under 21 years of age
who is an inmate of a public institution shall have his or her
Medi-Cal services suspended for up to one year.
   (c) The eligibility procedures of the State Department of Health
Care Services currently do not allow  the state to receive
  counties to obtain available  federal financial
participation for health care services provided to  juveniles
in detention facilities whose Medi-Cal eligibility has been either
terminated or suspended, even though federal financial participation
may be available.   juvenile detainees when they have
been transferred to a medical institution for inpatient services.

   (d) Pursuant to Section 5072 of the Penal Code and Section 14053.7
of the Welfare and Institutions Code, the department is authorized
to develop a process to maximize federal financial participation for
inpatient hospital services to adult inmates residing in a state
prison facility.
   (e) To reduce the fiscal strain on counties, it is imperative that
the department work with counties to develop and implement a similar
process to allow counties to obtain federal financial participation
based on county expenditures for inpatient hospital services provided
to juveniles in their custody.
  SEC. 2.  Section 14053.8 is added to the Welfare and Institutions
Code, to read:
   14053.8.  (a) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, the
department shall develop a process to  maximize federal
financial participation for health care services provided by counties
to juveniles who, but for being detained in a juvenile facility, are
otherwise eligible for Medi-Cal pursuant to this chapter or under a
Coverage Expansion and Enrollment Demonstration (CEED) project
pursuant to Part 3.6 (commencing with Section 15909).  
allow counties to receive any av   ailable federal financial
participation for health care services provided to juvenile
detainees who are admitted as inpatients in a medical  
institution.  This process shall be coordinated, to the extent
possible, with the processes and procedures established pursuant to
Section 14053.7 of this code and Section 5072 of the Penal Code. 

   (b) A juvenile detainee who is an inpatient in a medical
institution shall not be denied Medi-Cal eligibility because of his
or her institutional status as a detainee of a public institution.
 
   (b) 
    (c)  The department shall consult with counties in the
development of the process pursuant to this section. 
   (c) 
    (d) The department shall seek  all 
 any  federal approvals necessary to implement the process
developed pursuant to this section.  This section shall be
implemented only if and to the extent that any necessary federal
approval is obtained, and only to the extent that existing levels of
federal financial participation are not otherwise jeopardized. 

   (e) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, as part of the
process developed pursuant to this section, the department may exempt
the juvenile detainees from enrollment into new or existing managed
care health plans.  
   (d) 
    (f)  The process developed pursuant to this section
shall be implemented in only those counties that elect to voluntarily
provide the nonfederal share of expenditures for health care
services to  the juveniles described in subdivision (a).
  juvenile detainees who, but for their inpatient
status, would be ineligible for Medi-Cal as detainees of a public
institution.  
   (e) 
    (g)  The federal financial participation 
associated with services provided   received 
pursuant to the process implemented under this section shall be paid
to the participating counties  for services rendered to the
juvenil   e detainees  . 
   (h) Notwithstanding Chapter 3.5 (commencing with Section 11340) of
Part 1 of Division 2 of Title 2 of the Government Code, the
department may, without taking any further regulatory action,
implement this section by means of all-county letters or similar
instructions.