AB 720, as amended, Skinner. Inmates: health care enrollment.
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 Program provisions.begin delete Commencingend deletebegin insert Existing federal law prohibits federal financial participation for medical care provided to inmates of a public institution, except when the inmate is a patient in a medical institution.end insert
begin insertCommencingend insert
January 1, 2014, the federal Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act expands eligibility under the Medicaid Program for certain groupsbegin insert end insertbegin insertand enacts various other health care coverage market reforms that take effect on that dateend insert. Existing federal lawbegin delete prohibits persons who are involuntarily incarcerated in jail from obtaining these services, but permits persons detained in jail, but not sentenced to jail, to be eligible for services, as specified.end deletebegin insert requires the Secretary of Health and Human Services to develop and provide to each state a single, streamlined form that may be used to apply for all state health subsidy
programs, as defined, within the state.end insert
This bill would require the board of supervisors in each county to designate an entitybegin delete, as defined,end delete to assist certain jail inmates to apply for a health insurance affordability program, as defined. The bill would provide that county jail inmates who are currently enrolled in the Medi-Cal programbegin delete and who would become ineligible for benefits because of detention retain enrollment in that program, unlessend deletebegin insert shall not be terminated from the program due to their detention, unless required by federal law or they becomeend insert
otherwise ineligible, as specified. The bill would require the State Department of Health Care Services to establish, subject to federal law, a process to enable counties to obtain federal financial participation for these provisions.
By imposing additional duties on local governments, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program.
The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement.
This bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to these statutory provisions.
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: yes.
The people of the State of California do enact as follows:
Section 4011.11 is added to the Penal Code, to
2read:
(a) (1) The board of supervisors in each county shall
4designate an entity to assist county jail inmates described in
5subdivision (c) with submitting an application for a health
6insurance affordability program consistent with federal
7requirements.
8(2) The board of supervisors shall not designate the county
9sheriff as the entity to assist with submitting an application for a
10health insurance affordability program for county jail inmates
11described in subdivision (c) unless the county sheriff agrees to
12perform this function.
P3 1(3) If the board of supervisors designates a community-based
2organization
as the entity to assist with submitting an application
3for a health insurance affordability program for county jail inmates
4described in subdivision (c), the designation shall be subject to
5approval by the jail administrator, or his or her designee.
6(b) The jail administrator, or his or her designee, shall coordinate
7with the entity designated pursuant to subdivision (a).
8(c) The entity designated pursuant to subdivision (a) shall assist
9county jail inmates with submitting an application for a health
10insurance affordability program if all of the following conditions
11are met:
12(1) The inmate has been in detention for at least 72 hours
13begin insert
following remand into custody by a court or magistrateend insert.
14(2) The inmate appears potentially eligible to be enrolled in the
15health insurance affordability program upon release.
16(3) The inmate does not currently have health care coverage.
17(d) Consistent with federal regulations, county jail inmates who
18are currently enrolled in the Medi-Cal program shall not be
19terminated from the program due to their detention unless required
20by federal law, or they become otherwise ineligible.
21(e) Notwithstanding any other provision of law, and only to the
22extent that federal law allows, the State Department of Health Care
23Services shall establish a
process to enable counties to obtain the
24maximum available federal financial participation for
25administrative activities related to this section.
26(f) Notwithstanding any other law, the
entity designated pursuant
27to subdivision (a) is authorized to act on behalf of a county jail
28inmate, for purposes of applying for or a determination of eligibility
29for a health insurance affordability program.
30(g) For purposes of this section, the following definitions apply:
end delete
31(1) “Entity” means an individual, governmental agency, or
32community-based organization.
33(2) “Health
end delete
34begin insert(g)end insertbegin insert end insertbegin insertFor purposes of this section, “healthend insert insurance affordability
35program” means a program that is one of the following:
36(A)
end delete
37begin insert(1)end insert The state’s Medi-Cal program under Title XIX of the federal
38Social Security Act.
39(B)
end delete
P4 1begin insert(2)end insert The state’s children’s health insurance
program (CHIP)
2under title XXI of the federal Social Security Act.
3(C)
end delete
4begin insert(3)end insert A program that makes coverage in a qualified health plan
5through the California Health Benefit Exchange established
6pursuant to Section 100500 of the Government Code with advance
7payment of the premium tax credit established under Section 36B
8of the Internal Revenue Code available to qualified individuals.
9(D)
end delete
10begin insert(4)end insert A program that makes available coverage in a qualified
11health plan through the California Health Benefit Exchange
12established pursuant to Section 100500 of the Government Code
13with cost-sharing reductions established under Section 1402 of the
14federal Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (Public Law
15111-148) and any subsequent amendments to that act.
16(h) Notwithstanding Chapter 3.5 (commencing with Section
1711340) of Part 1 of Division 3 of Title 2 of the Government Code,
18the department may implement this section by means of all-county
19letters or similar instructions, without taking regulatory action.
If the Commission on State Mandates determines that
21this act contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement to
22local agencies and school districts for those costs shall be made
23pursuant to Part 7 (commencing with Section 17500) of Division
244 of Title 2 of the Government Code.
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