The California Department of Social Services (CDSS) released the
Bringing Families Home (BFH) Program application criteria on
September 5, 2019. BFH was established through Assembly Bill 1603
(Chapter 25, Statutes 2016), designed to provide housing related
assistance to child-welfare involved families, but funding was
set to expire June 30, 2019.
As the Legislative bill deadline has passed, CSAC Health and
Human Services staff took support positions on the following
enrolled bills. These bills are currently being reviewed by the
Governor for signature or veto. There are no HHS bills that CSAC
is asking the Governor to veto.
As we near the end of the 2019 legislative year, CSAC continues
to engage with several bill authors and sponsors to advocate for
the best outcomes for counties. CSAC was successful in
negotiating amendments on the two below bills that will allow us
to remove our opposition.
The Department of Health Care Services (DHCS) has posted the
application and funding allocations for one-time Housing
Funds for Whole Person Care (WPC) Pilots. The application
was released to current Whole Person Care Lead Entities on
Monday, July 22, 2019 and updated on posted on Friday, August 9,
2019 to their site. The application contains instructions for
counties, the funding allocations, the methodology used, and a
helpful list of deadlines.
This week, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS)
officially released the controversial
public charge final rule. The rule expands the definition of
public charge to require consideration of current or potential
receipt of non-cash benefits, including Medicaid/Medi-Cal,
SNAP/CalFresh, and federally subsidized housing when determining
whether to extend or revise a legal immigrant’s status.
As discussed in the CSAC Power Minute Video on In-Home
Supportive Services (IHSS), the revised County IHSS Maintenance
of Effort (MOE) will create a more sustainable fiscal structure
for counties to manage IHSS costs and continue to deliver vital
services on behalf of the state. CSAC partnered with counties
over the past two years to work towards achieving this outcome
and is grateful to the Governor and the Legislature for the
proposal and legislation that will accomplish this goal.
This week, the United States Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals
heard oral arguments in a case that could determine the
future of the Affordable Care Act (ACA).The Fifth Circuit Court
could make its decision on Texas v. United States by the
end of the year, but regardless of the outcome, the case is
widely expected to be appealed to the Supreme Court in 2020.
Governor Gavin Newsom signed
AB 46 into law last week. The bill, authored by
Assemblymember Wendy Carrillo, will replace out-of-date terms
used to refer to individuals living with mental illness
throughout California law.
On Monday, June 10, Governor Newsom announced the creation of a
Cabinet-level Workgroup for Aging to be convened by the Secretary
of the California Health and Human Services Agency (CHHS). As the
aging population is forecasted to rise significantly, the
workgroup, led by recently confirmed HHS Secretary Dr. Mark
Ghaly, will work to provide an actionable Master Plan on Aging
with the goal of transforming California into an age-friendly
state.
Dr. Mark Ghaly, who has extensive county experience, was
confirmed as the state’s new California Health and Human Services
Agency Secretary by the Senate Rules Committee this week. CSAC
was pleased to support Dr. Ghaly’s confirmation as Secretary, and
the Rules Committee unanimously voted to forward a recommendation
for confirmation to the full Senate.
The California Health and Human Services Agency (CHHS), the
Departments of Developmental Services, Health Care Services,
Rehabilitation, Social Services, and the California Department of
Education have prioritized improving the coordination of the
“Systems of Care” for high-needs children and youth at all levels
of engagement.
CSAC is following a number of budget-related items as the
legislative budget process proceeds toward the constitutional
deadline of June 15 for the Legislature to pass the state budget.
The health and human services-related budget subcommittees of
both houses have concluded their work, and the Senate Budget and
Fiscal Review Committee convened yesterday to approve their
version of the budget proposal. The Assembly Budget Committee
will meet tomorrow.
The California Department of Housing and Community Development
(HCD) has released draft NPLH guideline amendments. The draft
amendments are open for public comment until 5 p.m.
on Monday, June 10, 2019. HCD has scheduled workshops
for interested parties to review these amendments.
The draft guidelines, and workshop dates can be
found here and we
encourage county staff to provide feedback to HCD.
In recent weeks, both the Senate and Assembly Budget
Subcommittees on Health and Human Services have held hearings on
the Governor’s proposal to increase funding for local child
support agencies. As one of the investments aimed at reducing
child poverty, the Governor is proposing to increase funding by
$19.1 million General Fund in 2019-20, matched by $36.9 million
federal funds, and implement a new budgeting methodology. CSAC
shared our strong support for this proposal at the recent budget
hearings.
In a meeting on Tuesday with the San Bernardino Board of
Supervisors, Governor Gavin Newsom affirmed the key regional role
counties play in combatting homelessness and announced
his Homelessness
& Supportive Housing Regional Advisory Task Force. Led
by one county leader and one city leader, the homelessness task
force will work to get jurisdictions to plan and work
together in order to have the greatest possible impact in
their communities.
“I’ve long said regions rise together,” said Governor Newsom.
“Cities, counties and continuums of care are all pivotal players
in helping create long-term, sustained solutions to homelessness
throughout this state. All of us need to have skin in the game,
and we need to leverage every available resource – federal, state
and local dollars – to fight homelessness across California.”
Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors Chair Janice Hahn joined
Governor Newsom in Downey to announce the County’s
participation in the Governor’s California Pharmaceutical
Collaborative, which allows the state to partner with local
governments and other entities to bargain on bulk prescription
drug purchases and potentially save on drug prices.
Over the past week, both the Senate and Assembly Budget
Subcommittees on Health and Human Services have held hearings on
the Governor’s Budget proposals for, and potential investments
in, the child welfare system. The County Welfare Directors
Association of California (CWDA), working with county affiliates
and other partner organizations, is leading the way on many of
these proposed investments. CSAC is working diligently to convey
our support for the below child welfare budget augmentation
requests and shared our strong support at the recent budget
hearings.
The Senate Budget Subcommittee Number 3 will hear a proposal from
a coalition of county associations seeking $68 million in State
funding to bolster the local public guardian, public conservator,
and public administrator workforce to better serve the most
vulnerable adults in our communities.
Counties are pleased to welcome Michelle Cabrera as the new
Executive Director of the County Behavioral Health Directors
Association (CBHDA). The CBHDA Executive Director Search
Committee, which was comprised of behavioral health directors and
included CSAC Executive Director Graham Knaus, announced the
news this week after 10 months of searching.
The California Association of Public Hospitals and Health
Systems and the California Health Care Safety Net
Institute released their
brief on California’s value-based approach to health care
coverage. This value-based approach focuses on the value of
safety-net payments over the volume, leading to improved health
outcomes.
The Governor’s office recently
announced the appointment of Dr. Mark Ghaly as the new
Secretary of the California Health and Human Services Agency, and
the reappointment of Michelle Baass as the undersecretary.
Recently the Assembly Human Services Committee, chaired by
Assembly member Eloise Gómez Reyes, convened an
informational hearing on the Assembly Bill 1299 (Chapter 603,
Statutes of 2016) implementation efforts. Over the past four
years, the Administration, Legislature, and stakeholders have
enacted legislation and program changes to improve foster youth
outcomes, such as, AB 403 (Chapter 773, Statutes of 2015 ) the
Continuum of Care Reform (CCR) and AB 1299 “Presumptive
Transfer.”
The Assembly Health Committee, Assembly Budget Subcommittee 1 on
Health and Human Services, Senate Health Committee, and Budget
Subcommittee 3 on Health and Human Services met in a joint
informational hearing on February 12, 2019 to discuss the
problem of health care affordability in California and potential
solutions.
Peter Lee, Covered California’s Executive Director and Ryan
Woolsey, Legislative Analyst’s Office Principal Fiscal and Policy
Analyst presented options to improve affordability. Links to both
reports can be found below.
Governor Gavin Newsom delivered his first State of the State
address this week to a joint session of the California
Legislature. While many of the specific issues he covered
directly relate to county priorities, his speech continued the
broad theme of working together to protect the California dream.
He acknowledged that there are problems in the midst of all of
the prosperity and progress in our state and he committed to
making those hard decisions that will shape California for years
to come.
The California Department of Social Services, Continuum of Care
Reform Branch is hosting a webinar about a grant program to
reduce law enforcement involvement with residential facilities.
The webinar
takes place on February 12 at 10 a.m. and will provide
an overview of the funding and updated submission timelines.
Agencies interested in applying are encouraged to register for
the webinar and CDSS has indicated that the original February 1
submission date has been postponed.
Bank of America and JP Morgan Chase will provide free ATM access
to low-income families receiving benefits via their electronic
benefits transfer (EBT) cards, joining several smaller banks and
credit unions that already provide ATM access without surcharges.
This announcement comes after years of work by a coalition of
California advocates and social services providers including
counties and in partnership with the California Department of
Social Services (CDSS).
The County Medical Services Program (CMSP) has recently announced
two new grant opportunities – CMSP Loan Repayment Program (LRP)
and CMSP Health Systems Development Grant (HSG).
CMSP LRP
In partnership with the California Office of Statewide Health
Planning and Development (OSHPD), CMSP will assist with the
repayment of educational debt for the following professionals who
provide primary healthcare or dental services at an approved
contracted site located within the 35 CMSP counties:
As detailed in last
week’s Bulletin, the United States Department of Agriculture
indicated that it found a way to continue funding the
Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program/CalFresh through
February during the federal government shutdown. This plan
required states to request an issuance of benefits by January 20.
The California Health Care Foundation (CHCF) has
announced Medi-Cal Explained: An Overview of Program
Basics Briefing. This briefing will be the first in a series
sponsored by CHCF intended to provide an overview of Medi-Cal,
including the people it serves and the services it provides, as
well as the organization, oversight, and financing of the
program.
The Program Basics Briefing will be held at the Sacramento
Masonic Temple on February 12 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. with
lunch provided.
The County Medical Services Program (CMSP) Governing Board has
released its Request for Proposals (RFP) for the CMSP Health
Systems Development Grant (HSG) Program.
The Department of Health Care Services (DHCS), in collaboration
with the California Department of Social Services (CDSS) and the
California Institute for Behavioral Health Solutions, is
conducting regional meetings to support provider and county
collaboration and partnerships on the following topics:
This week, CSAC submitted
comments in response to the U.S. Department of Homeland
Security notice of proposed rulemaking related to the public
charge. The proposed rule would expand the definition of public
charge to require consideration of the current or potential
receipt of non-cash benefits for legal immigrants, including
Medicaid/Medi-Cal, SNAP/CalFresh, federally subsidized housing
and Medicare Part D financial assistance.
As part of the LAO’s California’s Fiscal Outlook,
discussed in detail
here, the LAO released fiscal outlooks for In-Home Supportive
Services (IHSS) and Medi-Cal.
For IHSS, the LAO projects that State General Fund expenditures
will grow by an average of 11 percent between 2018-19 and
2022-23. The three main drivers of this growth are:
With Governor Brown signing over 1,000 bills into law this year,
CSAC is publishing a series of articles to spotlight new laws
that impact counties from each policy area. This week, the report
from the Health and Human Services (HHS) policy area provides
information on new laws affecting foster care, mental health,
homelessness, and more. Stay tuned for more updates from other
policy areas over the next several weeks.
The new laws listed below become effective January 1, 2019,
unless otherwise noted.
CSAC President and Kern County Supervisor Leticia Perez
joined nearly 60 leaders in California’s behavioral health sphere
for a frank conversation on the need to adapt these critical
services to better meet the needs of all residents with
Lieutenant Governor Gavin Newsom Monday in San Francisco.
The Legislative Analyst’s Office (LAO) released a report Monday
titled Rethinking the 1991 Realignment. This report
analyzes whether 1991 Realignment is currently meeting the
original intent of aligning the finances, responsibilities, and
risks associated with providing social services, health, and
mental health services at the local level. The report also offers
potential solutions for improving 1991 Realignment.
The National Association of Counties (NACo) will
hold a webinar on Friday, October 19, at 10:30 am
PT to discuss the recent House and Senate-passed opioid
legislative package. During the webinar, participants will
discuss how this legislation could support local efforts to
combat addiction in our communities and to preview next steps for
opioid legislation in Congress and the administration.
This week, the National Association of Counties (NACo) invited
county officials to join a webinar on new federal funding
opportunities. In addition, NACo is providing counties an
opportunity to have their voices heard by two federal agencies in
a call to action.
