Amended in Assembly August 6, 2013

Amended in Senate May 28, 2013

Amended in Senate April 24, 2013

Senate Bill No. 800

Introduced by Senator Lara

February 22, 2013

An act begin insert to amend Section 12739.61 of, and to add Part 6.8 (commencing with Section 12739.77) to Division 2 of, the Insurance Code, and end insert to add Section 14005.275 to the Welfare and Institutions Code, relating to health, and declaring the urgency thereof, to take effect immediately.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

SB 800, as amended, Lara. begin delete California Health Benefit Exchange: outreach services. end delete begin insert Health care coverage programs: transition. end insert

Existing law creates various programs to provide health care services to persons who begin delete have limited incomes and end delete meet various eligibility requirements. These programs include the Healthy Families Program begin insert , the Access for Infants and Mothers Program, the County Health Initiative Matching Fund, the Major Risk Medical Insurance Program, and the Federal Temporary High Risk Pool, all end insert administered by the Managed Risk Medical Insurance Board, and the Medi-Cal program administered by the State Department of Health Care Services. Existing law provides for the transition of specified enrollees of the Healthy Families Program to the Medi-Cal program, to the extent that those individuals are otherwise eligible. begin insert Existing law also provides that employees of the board whose functions are transferred to the Medi-Cal program pursuant to that transition retain their positions, status, and rights. Existing law requires the board, beginning July 1, 2013, to cease the provision of health coverage through the Federal Temporary High Risk Pool, except as specified. end insert

Existing law establishes the California Health Benefit Exchange (Exchange), and requires the begin delete board governing the end delete Exchange to facilitate the purchase of qualified health plans through the Exchange by qualified individuals and small employers by January 1, 2014. Existing law also requires the begin delete board end delete begin insert Exchange end insert to undertake activities necessary to market and publicize the availability of health care coverage and federal subsidies through the Exchange and to undertake outreach and enrollment activities.

This bill would require the State Department of Health Care Services to provide the Exchange with specified contact information of individuals who are not enrolled in Medi-Cal but who are the parents or caretakers of children enrolled in the Healthy Families Program or the Medi-Cal program due to a transition from the Healthy Families Program, as specified, for purposes of assisting the Exchange to conduct outreach to individuals potentially eligible for a state health subsidy program, as defined.

begin insert

This bill would transfer to the Exchange any civil service employee of the board assigned to the Federal Temporary High Risk Pool and would provide that each transferred employee shall retain his or her status, position, and rights.

end insert begin insert

The bill would also provide that, if the board is dissolved or terminated, all employees assigned to the other programs administered by the board shall be transferred to the State Department of Health Care Services and each transferred employee shall retain his or her status, position, and rights. The bill would provide that any employee’s reinstatement rights that would have applied to the board shall instead apply to the department.

end insert

This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.

Vote: ²⁄₃. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: no.

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:

begin insert

begin insert SECTION 1. end insert   

end insert

begin insert Section 12739.61 of the end insert begin insert Insurance Code end insert begin insert is
amended to read: end insert

12739.61.  

begin insert (a) end insert begin insert   end insert The board shall cease to provide coverage
through the program on July 1, 2013, except as required by the
contract between the board and the United States Department of
Health and Human Services, and at that time shall cease to operate
the program except as required to complete payments to, or
payment reconciliations with, participating health plans or other
contractors, process appeals, or conduct other necessary termination
activities.

begin insert

(b) Any permanent or probationary civil service employee who
is employed by the board and assigned to the program and whose
function ceases due to this section shall immediately be transferred
to the California Health Benefit Exchange and shall retain his or
her status, position, and rights pursuant to Section 19050.9 of the
Government Code and the State Civil Service Act (Part 2
(commencing with Section 18500) and Part 2.6 (commencing with
Section 19815) of Division 5 of Title 2 of the Government Code).

end insert

begin insert

begin insert SEC. 2. end insert   

end insert

begin insert Part 6.8 (commencing with Section 12739.77) is added
to Division 2 of the end insert begin insert Insurance Code end insert begin insert , to read: end insert

begin insert

 

PART  begin insert 6.8. end insert   Program Transfers

 

begin insert 12739.77. end insert   

For the purposes of this part, the following terms
have the following meanings:

(a) “Board” means the Managed Risk Medical Insurance Board.

(b) “Employee” means permanent or probationary civil service
employee.

begin insert 12739.78. end insert   

(a) If any statute dissolves or terminates the board,
any employee of the board who, immediately prior to the effective
date of the dissolution or termination of the board, was assigned
to the Healthy Families Program (Part 6.2 (commencing with
Section 12693)), the Access for Infants and Mothers Program (Part
6.3 (commencing with Section 12695)), the County Health Initiative
Matching Fund (Part 6.4 (commencing with Section 12699.50)),
or the Major Risk Medical Insurance Program (Part 6.5
(commencing with Section 12700)) shall be transferred to the State
Department of Health Care Services and shall retain his or her
status, position, and rights pursuant to Section 19050.9 of the
Government Code and the State Civil Service Act (Part 2
(commencing with Section 18500) and Part 2.6 (commencing with
Section 19815) of Division 5 of Title 2 of the Government Code).

(b) (1) If any statute dissolves or terminates the board, any
employee of the board who, immediately prior to the effective date
of the dissolution or termination of the board, was assigned to the
Federal Temporary High Risk Pool (Part 6.6 (commencing with
Section 12739.5) and Part 6.7 (commencing with Section
12739.70)) shall be transferred to the California Health Benefit
Exchange and shall retain his or her status, position, and rights
pursuant to Section 19050.9 of the Government Code and the State
Civil Service Act (Part 2 (commencing with Section 18500) and
Part 2.6 (commencing with Section 19815) of Division 5 of Title
2 of the Government Code).

(2) This subdivision shall not apply to any employee who has
transferred to the California Health Benefit Exchange pursuant
to subdivision (b) of Section 12739.61.

(c) If any statute dissolves or terminates the board, an
employee’s applicable reinstatement rights that would have applied
to the board shall instead apply to the State Department of Health
Care Services.

end insert

begin delete SECTION 1. end delete
begin insert SEC. 3. end insert   

Section 14005.275 is added to the Welfare and
Institutions Code, immediately following Section 14005.27, to
read:

14005.275.  

In order to assist the California Health Benefit
Exchange, established pursuant to Title 22 (commencing with
Section 100500) of the Government Code, to conduct outreach to
individuals potentially eligible for a state health subsidy program,
as defined in Section 15926, the department shall provide the
California Health Benefit Exchange, or its designee, with the
names, addresses, email addresses, telephone numbers, or other
contact information, and written and spoken languages of
individuals who are not enrolled in Medi-Cal but are the parents
or caretakers of children enrolled in the Healthy Families Program
or the Medi-Cal program pursuant to Section 14005.27.

begin delete SEC. 2. end delete
begin insert SEC. 4. end insert   

This act is an urgency statute necessary for the
immediate preservation of the public peace, health, or safety within
the meaning of Article IV of the Constitution and shall go into
immediate effect. The facts constituting the necessity are:

To ensure begin delete that end delete begin insert the smooth and timely transition of public
employees and end insert individuals who are eligible for state health subsidy
programs begin delete receive information about those programs end delete before the
California Health Benefit Exchange will begin making health care
coverage available in January 2014, it is necessary that this begin delete bill end delete
begin insert act end insert take effect immediately.