BILL ANALYSIS Ó
SENATE COMMITTEE ON APPROPRIATIONS
Senator Ricardo Lara, Chair
2015 - 2016 Regular Session
AB 1018 (Cooper) - Medi-Cal: Early and Periodic Screening,
Diagnosis, and Treatment (EPSDT)
-----------------------------------------------------------------
| |
| |
| |
-----------------------------------------------------------------
|--------------------------------+--------------------------------|
| | |
|Version: May 28, 2015 |Policy Vote: ED. 9 - 0, HEALTH |
| | 7 - 0 |
| | |
|--------------------------------+--------------------------------|
| | |
|Urgency: No |Mandate: No |
| | |
|--------------------------------+--------------------------------|
| | |
|Hearing Date: August 17, 2015 |Consultant: Brendan McCarthy |
| | |
-----------------------------------------------------------------
This bill meets the criteria for referral to the Suspense File.
Bill
Summary: AB 1018 would require the Department of Health Care
Services and the Department of Education to convene a joint
taskforce to examine the delivery of mental health services to
children.
Fiscal
Impact:
One-time costs up to $100,000 for the Department of Health
Care Services to provide staff support to the taskforce and
develop the required report (General Fund and federal funds).
One-time costs of $105,000 for the Department of Education to
provide staff support to the taskforce and develop the
required report (General Fund).
One-time costs of about $20,000 for logistical support of the
task force, including reimbursing travel expenses for members
AB 1018 (Cooper) Page 1 of
?
(General Fund and federal funds).
Background: Under state and federal law, the Department of Health Care
Services operates the Medi-Cal program, which provides health
care coverage to low income individuals, families, and children.
Medi-Cal provides coverage to childless adults and parents with
household incomes up to 138% of the federal poverty level and to
children with household incomes up to 266% of the federal
poverty level. The federal government provides matching funds
that vary from 50% to 90% of expenditures depending on the
category of beneficiary.
As part of the Medi-Cal program, the Early and Periodic
Screening, Diagnosis, and Treatment (EPSDT) program, provides
health care and mental health benefits to Medi-Cal enrollees
under age 21. Typically, mental health services covered under
EPSDT are considered specialty mental health services and are
provided (and paid for) by county mental health plans.
Prior to 2012, students who had mental health needs documented
in their individualized education plan were referred by local
educational agencies to county mental health plans to receive
specialty mental health services. Budget trailer bill adopted in
2011 shifted responsibility for providing certain mental health
services from county mental health plans to local educational
agencies. Mental health services identified in a student's
individualized education plan must be provided directly by the
local educational agency or through contracts with outside
providers. (This did not eliminate the county obligation to fund
specialty mental health services.) While local educational
agencies are required to ensure that student mental health
service needs are met, local educational agencies can only
provide and bill for EPSDT services if the local educational
agency contracts with the county mental health plan. At this
time, local educational agencies may provide mental health
services without seeking Medi-Cal reimbursement, enroll as a
Medi-Cal provider and bill Medi-Cal for services provided to
Medi-Cal enrollees, or collaborate with a county mental health
plan to secure mental health services through the county mental
health plan.
AB 1018 (Cooper) Page 2 of
?
Proposed Law:
AB 1018 would require the Department of Health Care Services
and the Department of Education to convene a joint taskforce to
examine the delivery of mental health services to children.
The bill would require the taskforce to consider several issues
relating to the delivery of mental health services to students,
funding arrangements to pay for those services, best practices
for coordination between school organizations and county mental
health plans, and other issues.
The bill would require a report from the taskforce to the
Legislature by January 1, 2017.
The bill's provisions would sunset on January 1, 2021.
Related
Legislation: AB 1133 (Achadjian) would establish a four year
pilot project to provide outreach and technical assistance to
local educational agencies for providing mental health services
at school sites. That bill was held on the Assembly
Appropriations Committee's Suspense File.
Staff
Comments: The Joint Legislative Audit Committee recently
approved an audit request, requiring the Bureau of State Audits
to review the provision of mental health services to students.
-- END --