BILL NUMBER: AB 1599	INTRODUCED
	BILL TEXT


INTRODUCED BY   Assembly Member Beall

                        JANUARY 4, 2010

   An act to add Article 5.5 (commencing with Section 14183) to
Chapter 7 of Part 3 of Division 9 of the Welfare and Institutions
Code, relating to Medi-Cal.



	LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


   AB 1599, as introduced, Beall. Medi-Cal: alcohol and drug
screening and brief intervention services.
   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.
   This bill would establish the Medi-Cal Alcohol and Drug Screening
and Brief Intervention Services Program, which would be administered
by the department, in consultation with the State Department of
Alcohol and Drug Programs, for the purpose of increasing the state's
ability to make available alcohol and drug screening and brief
intervention services to Medi-Cal beneficiaries who are pregnant
women or women of childbearing age by authorizing a public entity, as
defined, to provide or contract for these services for Medi-Cal
beneficiaries who are pregnant women or women of childbearing age.
The bill would require the department to administer the program in
accordance with federal certified public expenditure requirements in
certifying that a claimed expenditure for alcohol and drug screening
and brief intervention services is eligible for federal financial
participation. This bill would require the nonfederal share of
expenditures submitted to the federal Centers for Medicare and
Medicaid Services for purposes of claiming federal financial
participation for services provided pursuant to the program to be
comprised of only those funds that are paid by a public entity and
certified in accordance with federal certified public expenditure
requirements. The bill would require the department to promptly seek
any necessary federal approvals for the implementation of the
program.
   The bill would provide that participation in the program would be
voluntary for a qualifying Medi-Cal beneficiary. The bill would also
require the fact of whether a beneficiary participates in the
program, and the results of any screening done under the program, to
be maintained in the beneficiary's confidential medical records, as
provided.
   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 finds and declares all of the
following:
   (a) Screening and brief intervention for alcohol and other drug
abuse, in emergency rooms, primary care centers, clinics, and other
settings, have been demonstrated to be valuable and effective tools
in the prevention, interruption, and treatment of alcohol and other
drug abuse.
   (b) Alcohol and drug screening and brief intervention services
should be readily available to patients in emergency rooms, primary
care centers, clinics, and other appropriate settings.
   (c) A Medi-Cal beneficiary eligible for alcohol and drug screening
and brief intervention services should not be discriminated against
based on his or her type of coverage.
   (d) The use of available federal and other funds to support the
delivery of alcohol and drug screening and brief intervention
services should be maximized.
  SEC. 2.  Article 5.5 (commencing with Section 14183) is added to
Chapter 7 of Part 3 of Division 9 of the Welfare and Institutions
Code, to read:

      Article 5.5.  Medi-Cal Alcohol and Drug Screening and Brief
Intervention Services Program


   14183.  This article shall be known, and may be cited, as the
Medi-Cal Alcohol and Drug Screening and Brief Intervention Services
Program.
   14183.1.  For purposes of this article, the following definitions
shall apply:
   (a) "Department" means the State Department of Health Care
Services.
   (b) "Public entity" means a county, or other local governmental
entity designated by the department, that elects to provide or
contract for alcohol and drug screening and brief intervention
services for Medi-Cal beneficiaries who are pregnant women or women
of childbearing age pursuant to this article.
   14183.2.  (a) The Medi-Cal Alcohol and Drug Screening and Brief
Intervention Services Program is hereby established.
   (b) The department, in consultation with the State Department of
Alcohol and Drug Programs, shall administer the program for the
purpose of increasing the state's ability to make available alcohol
and drug screening and brief intervention services for Medi-Cal
beneficiaries who are pregnant women or women of childbearing age.
   14183.3.  (a) The department shall administer this article in
accordance with federal regulations in certifying that the claimed
expenditures for alcohol and drug screening and brief intervention
services for Medi-Cal beneficiaries who are pregnant women or women
of childbearing age are eligible for federal financial participation.
The department shall do all of the following in accordance with
administering this provision:
   (1) Provide evidence supporting the certification, as specified by
the department.
   (2) Submit data, as specified by the department, to determine the
appropriate amounts to claim as expenditures qualifying for federal
financial participation.
   (3) Keep, maintain, and have readily retrievable, any records
specified by the department to fully disclose reimbursement amounts
to which the eligible public entity is entitled, and any other
records required by the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid
Services.
   (b) The nonfederal share of expenditures submitted to the federal
Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services for purposes of claiming
federal financial participation shall be comprised of only those
funds that are paid by a public entity, as defined in subdivision (b)
of Section 14183.1, and certified in accordance with subdivision
(a).
   (c) In administering this article, the department shall do all of
the following:
   (1) Promptly seek any necessary federal approvals for the
implementation of this article.
   (2) Submit claims for federal financial participation for the
expenditures for the services described in subdivision (a) that are
allowable expenditures under federal law.
   (3) Submit, on an annual basis, any necessary materials to the
federal government to provide assurances that claims for federal
financial participation will include only those expenditures that are
allowable under federal law.
   (4) Create an appropriate mechanism to enable a public entity to
pay the nonfederal share of the cost of providing services pursuant
to this article.
   (d) Upon receipt of federal reimbursement for the claim, including
federal matching funds, the department shall provide the
reimbursement to the public entity for which the claim was submitted.

   (e) The department may implement, interpret, and make specific
this article by means of all-county letters, provider bulletins, and
similar instructions.
   (f) Participation in the screening and intervention program
established pursuant to this article shall be voluntary for a
Medi-Cal beneficiary. Participation in the program, and results of
the screening, shall be maintained in the beneficiary's confidential
medical records, and subject to all confidentiality requirements
applicable to medical records.
   (g) It is the intent of the Legislature, in enacting this section,
to provide the alcohol and drug screening and brief intervention
services to Medi-Cal beneficiaries who are pregnant or who are women
of childbearing age without the expenditure of moneys from the
General Fund.
   (h) A public entity that participates in the program established
pursuant to this article shall, upon receiving federal financial
participation for certified public expenditures made for alcohol and
drug screening and brief intervention services, reimburse the state
for any costs of creating and administering the program.
   (i) A public entity shall, as a condition of receiving federal
financial participation for certified public expenditures made for
alcohol and drug screening and brief intervention services for a
Medi-Cal beneficiary who is pregnant or who is a woman of
childbearing age, enter into, and abide by, an agreement with the
department regarding the implementation of this section and
reimbursement to the department for the department's costs for
administering this section.
   14183.4.  This article shall be implemented only if, and to the
extent that, federal funds are available for this purpose.