Amended in Assembly April 27, 2015

California Legislature—2015–16 Regular Session

Assembly Bill No. 332

Introduced by Assembly Member Calderon

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(Coauthor: Assembly Member Brown)

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February 13, 2015

An act to add and repeal Section 10234.75 of the Insurance Code, relating to insurance.

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL’S DIGEST

AB 332, as amended, Calderon. Long-term care insurance.

Existing law provides for the regulation of long-term care insurance by the Insurance Commissioner and prescribes various requirements and conditions governing the delivery of individual or group long-term care insurance in the state. Existing law establishes the California Partnership for Long-Term Care Program to link private long-term care insurance and health care service plan contracts that cover long-term care with the In-Home Supportive Services program and Medi-Cal and to provide Medi-Cal benefits to certain individuals who have income and resources above the eligibility levels for receipt of medical assistance, but who have purchased certified private long-term care insurance policies.

This bill would require the Insurance Commissioner to convene a task force composed of specified stakeholders and representatives of government agencies to examine the components necessary to design a statewide long-term care insurance program, as specified. The bill would require the task force to recommend options for establishing this program and to comment on their respective degrees of feasibility in a report submitted to the commissioner, the Governor, and the Legislature by January 1, 2017.

Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: no.

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

SECTION 1.  

The Legislature hereby finds and declares all of
the following:

(a) Recent public opinion research indicates that Californians,
regardless of political party or income level, are worried about the
costs of growing older. Two-thirds of respondents in the research
said that they are apprehensive about being able to afford long-term
care. Sixty-three percent of respondents worry as much about
paying for long-term care as they do for their future health care.

(b) A majority of respondents could not afford more than three
months of nursing home care at an average cost of six thousand
dollars ($6,000) per month in California. About 4 in 10 respondents
could not afford a single month of care at that rate. Among Latino
voters, 88 percent said they do not have long-term care insurance
or are not sure whether they are covered for supportive services
like in-home care. Concerns about paying for long-term care cut
across all income levels and all partisan affiliations.

(c) It is the intent of the Legislature to enact legislation
establishing a task force to explore the feasibility of developing
begin insert and implementing end insert a begin insert culturally competent end insert statewide insurance
program for long-term care services and supports.

SEC. 2.  

Section 10234.75 is added to the Insurance Code, to
read:

10234.75.  

(a) The commissioner shall convene a task force to
examine the components necessary to design a statewide long-term
care insurance program. The task force shall do all of the following:

(1) Explore how a statewide long-term care insurance program
could be designed begin insert and implemented end insert to expand the options for
people who begin delete become functionally or cognitively disabled end delete begin insert are
interested in insuring themselves against the risk of costs
associated with functional or cognitive disability, end insert and require
long-term begin delete care services end delete begin insert care, services, end insert and supports.

(2) Explore options for the design of the program, including
eligibility, enrollment, benefits, financing, administration, and
interaction with the Medi-Cal program and other publicly funded
resources. In exploring these options, the task force shall consider
all of the following:

(A) Whether and how a long-term care insurance program could
be included as a benefit in the state disability insurance program
structure, possibly through a nominal increase in the payroll tax,
and whether the program could be structured in the same manner
as Paid Family Leave benefits.

(B) Allowing for enrollment in the program of working adults
who would make voluntary premium contributions either directly
or through payroll deductions through their employer.

(C) To the extent feasible, requiring a mandatory enrollment
with a voluntary opt-out option.

(D) Giving working adults the opportunity to plan for future
long-term care needs by providing a basic insurance benefit to
those who meet work requirements and have developed functional
or equivalent cognitive limitations.

(E) Helping individuals with functional or cognitive limitations
remain in their communities by purchasing nonmedical services
and supports such as home health care and adult day care.

(F) Helping offset the costs incurred by adults with chronic and
disabling conditions. The program need not be designed to cover
the entire begin delete costs end delete begin insert cost end insert associated with an individual’s long-term care
needs.

(3) Evaluate how benefits under the program would be
coordinated with existing private health care coverage benefits.

(4) Take into account the premiums necessary to provide an
adequate benefit within a solvent program.

(5) Evaluate the demands on the long-term care workforce as
the need for long-term care in California grows, and how the
long-term care workforce can be prepared to meet those demands.

(b) The task force shall be composed of key senior health policy
and long-term care insurance stakeholders, at least one
representative from the State Department of Health Care Services,
at least one representative from the Employment Development
Department, and at least one representative from a labor union
representing long-term care workers. The task force may include
representatives from other relevant federal, state, and local
government agencies.

(c) The department shall operate within its existing budgetary
resources for purposes of implementing this section. Any
governmental agency that participates in the task force shall operate
within its existing budgetary resources for purposes of that
participation.

(d) The task force shall recommend options for establishing a
statewide long-term care insurance program and comment on the
respective degrees of begin delete flexibility end delete begin insert feasibility end insert of those options in a
report submitted to the commissioner, the Governor, and the
Legislature on or before January 1, 2017. The report submitted to
the Legislature shall be submitted in accordance with Section 9795
of the Government Code.

(e) The commissioner may seek private funds for purposes of
implementing this section.

(f) This section shall remain in effect only until January 1, 2019,
and as of that date is repealed, unless a later enacted statute, that
is enacted before January 1, 2019, deletes or extends that date.