Based on current COVID-19 trends, the federal Department of
Health and Human Services (HHS) is planning for the federal
Public Health Emergency (PHE) for COVID-19, declared under
Section 319 of the Public Health Services Act, to expire at the
end of the day today, May 11, 2023.
Supervisors and county staff throughout the state convened in
Sacramento County for the 2023 CSAC Legislative Conference to
engage, empower and
elevate our collective county voice.
CSAC’s five policy committees – AOJ, AENR, GFA, HHS and HLT
– held important discussions to help steer the Association’s
policy and direction. Below is a recap from each policy
committees’ meeting.
The County Medical Services Program (CMSP) Governing Board
recently launched the CMSP Healthcare Infrastructure Development
Matching Grant program (HID Matching Grant) and is now accepting
applications.
While members of the Legislature returned home to their districts
for Spring Recess this week, legislative staff and advocates are
gearing up for long hearing days in the coming weeks as the
deadline for policy committees to hear and report fiscal bills
approaches at the end of April. As bills continue to take shape
in their house of origin, the CSAC Health and Human Services
(HHS) team is actively engaged on dozens of bills that impact
county administration and delivery of critical health, behavioral
health, and social services.
Following a four day “Tour of the State,” Governor Gavin Newsom
delivered a
letter to the Legislature this week, fulfilling his annual
duty to report to the Legislature on the condition of the state.
The letter, which was delivered in lieu of a formal speech,
highlights the Administration’s accomplishments over the past
four years and the major policy announcements made on his
statewide tour of California.
The California Mental Health Services Authority (CalMHSA) has
made its Peer Support Specialist Supervisor training available
online.
The course is an hour-long, self-paced online training resource
on CalMHSA’s learning management system.
On Wednesday, the Governor
announced the availability of $907 million in grant funding
for county behavioral health agencies (BHAs) under the initial
round of the Behavioral Health Bridge Housing (BHBH) program to
address the immediate housing and treatment needs of people
experiencing homelessness and serious behavioral health
conditions, including mental illness and substance use disorders.
The Mental Health Services Oversight & Accountability Commission
(MHSOAC) has released a
Request for Application (RFA) to award $20 million in
available Mental Health Wellness Act funds to support the
implementation and scaling of Age Wise and PEARLS programs
throughout California with the overall goal of addressing the
mental health needs of older adults.
The homelessness policy debate is heating up with a flurry of
hearings, legislation, and advocacy opportunities occurring in
the last two weeks. Rest assured that your input is helping
create progress, and we have much to look forward to as the year
unfolds.
Yesterday, the Department of Health Care Services (DHCS) launched
a statewide public information, education, and outreach campaign
to raise awareness about the upcoming return of the Medi-Cal
eligibility renewal process for over 15 million Medi-Cal members,
and to encourage individuals to take steps to maintain their
coverage.
On Tuesday, January 31, Governor Newsom signed a
proclamation terminating 26 open states of emergency dating
back to 2017. These include various fires, prior storms and other
incidents including the mpox (formerly referred to as monkeypox)
emergency proclaimed in August of last year, coinciding with the
termination of the federal public health emergency
on mpox.
Earlier this week, the California Department of Health Care
Services (DHCS) announced the awarding of $119 million to help 98
organizations build capacity and infrastructure in Medi-Cal’s
delivery system. These investments are a component of
implementing California Advancing and Innovating Medi-Cal
(CalAIM), with the goal of providing a more person-centered
approach to delivering health care to California’s most
vulnerable residents.
The California Health and Human Services Agency (CalHHS)
announced it will be hosting the first Community Assistance,
Recovery, and Empowerment (CARE) Act Working Group meeting on
February 14 from 1pm-4pm, in collaboration with the Department of
Health Care Services and the Judicial Council of California.
On January 30, the Biden Administration
communicated to Congress its intent to extend both the
COVID-19 national emergency and public health emergency (PHE)
declarations to May 11, and then end both emergencies on that
date. This wind-down would align with the Administration’s
previous commitments to provide at least 60 days’ notice prior to
termination of the PHE.
The Department of Health Care Services (DHCS) has provided the
following information regarding various funding opportunities
that may be of interest to counties:
The County Medical Services Program (CMSP) Governing Board is
launching the CMSP Healthcare Infrastructure Development Matching
Grant (HID Matching Grant) Program to assist CMSP counties
develop expanded facility capacity to provide healthcare and
behavioral health services to underserved populations, including
CMSP beneficiaries.
On January 11, U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary
Becerra extended
the federal public health emergency (PHE) due to the
COVID-19 pandemic for another 90 days, delaying the expiration
until April 11, 2023, although the Secretary may terminate the
declaration whenever he determines that the emergency has ceased
to exist. Secretary Becerra has previously promised to provide 60
days’ notice before ending the emergency.
California is experiencing a large winter storm with flash
flood risks, heavy snow for the Sierra and other mountain ranges,
and high wind warnings/advisories remain in effect for much of
the state.
The California Health and Human Services Agency (CalHHS), in
collaboration with the Department of Health Care Services and the
Judicial Council of California, will be sharing a webinar with
general information and important updates on the implementation
of the Community Assistance, Recovery & Empowerment (CARE) Act.
The recorded webinar will be posted on the CalHHS CARE Act website
coinciding with an email announcement on Monday, December
19.
Join CSAC, Rural County Representatives of California (RCRC), and
Urban Counties of California (UCC) on Friday,
December 9, to learn what to expect for CARE Court
implementation.
Yesterday, Governor Newsom
announced $480.5 million in awards for 54 projects across
California to improve California’s behavioral health
infrastructure for children and youth. These funds will be used
to construct new facilities and expand existing facilities that
help children, youth, transition-age youth, and perinatal
individuals with a behavioral health and/or substance use
disorder.
On December 1, the Department of Health Care Services (DHCS)
released a
Request for Applications (RFA) as part of the Children and
Youth Behavioral Health Initiative. In this first round of grant
funding totaling $30 million, DHCS is seeking proposals to scale
up evidence-based and community-defined evidence practices.
The California Governor’s Office of Emergency Services (Cal OES)
is requesting local jurisdictions to submit all eligible COVID-19
costs incurred up to July 1, 2022 in order to maximize Federal
Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) reimbursement. Although the
September 30 deadline for this submission to Cal OES has lapsed,
Cal OES is still accepting these submissions as many local
jurisdictions’ submissions are still outstanding.
CSAC recently reported on the final outcomes of measures that
were approved by the Legislature and delivered to Governor Newsom
for action. To keep counties informed of new laws of interest and
impact, CSAC will publish a series of articles to spotlight those
laws in each policy area. This week, the Health and Human
Services policy area provides information on new laws affecting
behavioral health, health services, and human services in
California counties.
The new laws listed below become effective January 1, 2023 unless
otherwise noted.
Join CSAC, Rural County Representatives of California (RCRC), and
Urban Counties of California (UCC) on Friday,
December 9, to learn what to expect for CARE Court
implementation.
Governor Newsom rejected all applications for the third round of
state Homelessness Housing, Assistance and Prevention (HHAP)
grants today, calling for more accelerated goals to reduce street
homelessness.
“As a state, we are failing to meet the urgency of this moment,”
Newsom said. Read the Governor’s press release
here.
The Department of Health Care Services (DHCS) will host an
informational webinar on Wednesday, November 2 at
2:00 pm to review the BHCIP Round 5 funding opportunity
and application process. This round will fund $480 million in
projects to address significant crisis care gaps in California’s
behavioral health infrastructure, with consideration for funding
priority to those that provide crisis services to individuals in
need.
U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Becerra extended
the federal public health emergency due to the COVID-19
pandemic for another 90 days on October 13, placing the
expiration – for now – at or around January 11, 2023, although
the Secretary may terminate the declaration whenever he
determines that the emergency has ceased to exist. Secretary
Becerra has previously promised to provide 60 days’ notice before
ending the emergency.
Governor Newsom vetoed AB
240 (Rodriguez), which would have required the Department of
Public Health to conduct an evaluation of the adequacy of local
health department infrastructure and to make recommendations for
future staffing, funding, workforce needs, and resources, in
order to accurately and adequately fund local public health.
Governor Gavin Newsom vetoed SB
1302 (Portantino), which would have appropriated $250 million
from the Mental Health Services Fund to support school-based
health centers through grants issued by the Superintendent of
Public Instruction (veto
request).
