BILL ANALYSIS Ó
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | AB 422|
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THIRD READING
Bill No: AB 422
Author: Nazarian (D)
Amended: 7/2/13 in Senate
Vote: 21
SENATE EDUCATION COMMITTEE : 9-0, 6/12/13
AYES: Liu, Wyland, Block, Correa, Hancock, Hueso, Huff,
Monning, Torres
SENATE HEALTH COMMITTEE : 9-0, 6/26/13
AYES: Hernandez, Anderson, Beall, De León, DeSaulnier, Monning,
Nielsen, Pavley, Wolk
ASSEMBLY FLOOR : 71-2, 5/16/13 - See last page for vote
SUBJECT : Notice of Health Care Coverage on School Lunch
Applications
SOURCE : California Pan-Ethnic Health Network
DIGEST : This bill requires information on additional health
care coverage through the California Health Benefit Exchange
(CHBE) and the continued availability of Medi-Cal options to be
included on the National School Lunch Program (NSLP)
notifications that school districts may provide to students, as
specified. This bill also provides that a school district may
include the notifications as part of the existing parental
notifications at the beginning of the first semester or quarter
of the regular school term, as specified. This bill is
effective on January 1, 2014.
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ANALYSIS : The California Department of Education oversees the
largest child nutrition program in the country and administers
over $2.3 billion in federal local assistance funding,
supporting service of more than five million meals each day at
over 45,000 sites through several programs, including the NSLP,
the School Breakfast Program, and the Child and Adult Care Food
Program. The NSLP is a federally-funded entitlement program
that is open to all children enrolled in public and private
schools and residential child care institutions. Depending on
the child's family size and income level, a student receives
meals free, at a reduced price, or pays the full cost. This
NSLP uses donated commodity foods to help reduce the price of
the lunches.
Existing law requires the governing board of a school district
and the county superintendent of schools to make applications
for free or reduced price meals available to students at all
times during each regular school day, as specified, and
formulate a plan that will ensure that children eligible to
receive free or reduced priced meals shall not be treated
differently from other children.
Existing law requires that in making applications for free or
reduced-price meals, each school district and county
superintendent of schools is encouraged to include information
that parents may use to request information concerning Medi-Cal
and the Healthy Families Program.
At the option of the school district or county superintendent,
the following information may be incorporated into the NSLP
application packet or notification of eligibility:
1. A notification that if a child qualifies for free lunches,
then the child may qualify for free or reduced-cost health
coverage.
2. A request for the applicant's consent for the child to
participate in the Medi-Cal program, if eligible for free
school lunches, and to have the information on the school
lunch application shared with the entity designated by the
Department of Health Care Services (DHCS) to make an
accelerated determination and the local agency that
determines eligibility under the Medi-Cal program.
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3. A notification that the school district will not forward the
school lunch application to the entity designated by the DHCS
to make an accelerated determination and the local agency
that determines eligibility under the Medi-Cal program,
without the consent of the child's parent or guardian.
4. A notification that the school lunch application is
confidential and, with the exception of forwarding the
information for use in health program enrollment upon the
consent of the child's parent or guardian, the school
district will not share the information with any other
governmental agency, including the federal Department of
Homeland Security and the Social Security Administration
(SSA).
5. A notification that the school lunch application information
will only be used by the entity designated by the DHCS to
make an accelerated determination and the state and local
agencies that administer the Medi-Cal program for purposes
directly related to the administration of the program and
will not be shared with other government agencies, including
the Department of Homeland Security and the SSA for any
purpose other than the administration of the Medi-Cal
program.
6. Information regarding the Medi-Cal program, including
available services, program requirements, rights and
responsibilities, and privacy and confidentiality
requirements.
This bill requires the NSLP notifications, effective January 1,
2014, to do the following:
1. Advise the applicant that he/she may be eligible for
reduced-cost comprehensive health care coverage through CHBE.
2. Advise that, if the applicant's family income is low, the
applicant may be eligible for no-cost coverage through
Medi-Cal.
3. Provide the applicant with the contact information for the
CHBE, including its Web site and telephone number.
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4. Comply with the federal Americans with Disabilities Act of
1990 and any other applicable federal or state disabled
access law.
This bill provides that a school district may include the
notifications as part of the existing parental notifications at
the beginning of the first semester or quarter of the regular
school term, as specified.
This bill requires the county to treat the application as an
application for a health insurance affordability program
(Medi-Cal, or coverage in the CHBE), as specified. If the
county determines the child is already enrolled in a health
insurance affordability program, the county would take no
further action.
Comments
According to the author's office, millions of Californians lack
healthcare coverage. Health problems are more likely to
escalate with the lack of health insurance which affects a
child's ability to learn and a parent's ability to work. The
recent passage of the federal Affordable Care Act in 2010 offers
individuals and families additional health care coverage
options, including expanded Medi-Cal coverage and tax subsidies
to purchase health insurance through the CHBE. According to the
author's office, although children and families may be eligible
for new coverage options, many of them may be unaware. The
purpose of this bill is to minimize health problems arising from
a lack of health coverage by requiring school districts to
disseminate information regarding the availability of the
additional health care coverage options in tandem with free and
reduced-price lunch notifications.
FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: No Local:
No
SUPPORT : (Verified 7/2/13)
California Pan-Ethnic Health Network (source)
AFSCME
California Chapter of the American College of Emergency
Physicians
California Chiropractic Association
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California Optometric Association
California School Employees Association
California State Parent Teachers Association
California Teachers Association
Health Access California
Los Angeles Trust for Children's Health
National Association of Social Workers, California Chapter
Southside Coalition of Community Health Centers
Western Center on Law and Poverty
ASSEMBLY FLOOR : 71-2, 5/16/13
AYES: Achadjian, Alejo, Ammiano, Atkins, Bigelow, Bloom,
Blumenfield, Bocanegra, Bonilla, Bonta, Bradford, Brown,
Buchanan, Ian Calderon, Campos, Chau, Chesbro, Conway, Cooley,
Dahle, Daly, Dickinson, Eggman, Fong, Fox, Frazier, Beth
Gaines, Garcia, Gatto, Gomez, Gordon, Gorell, Gray, Hagman,
Hall, Harkey, Roger Hernández, Jones, Jones-Sawyer, Levine,
Linder, Logue, Lowenthal, Maienschein, Mansoor, Medina,
Mitchell, Mullin, Muratsuchi, Nazarian, Nestande, Olsen, Pan,
Patterson, Perea, V. Manuel Pérez, Quirk, Quirk-Silva, Rendon,
Salas, Skinner, Ting, Torres, Wagner, Waldron, Weber,
Wieckowski, Wilk, Williams, Yamada, John A. Pérez
NOES: Chávez, Donnelly
NO VOTE RECORDED: Allen, Grove, Holden, Melendez, Morrell,
Stone, Vacancy
PQ:k 7/2/13 Senate Floor Analyses
SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE
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