Policy Brief – Medicaid Managed Care Plans and Reentry: A Review of How Other States Using Medicaid Plans to Improve the Reentry of Prison and Jail Inmates
By California Health Policy Strategies, LLC
California Health Policy Strategies, LLC, January 31, 2019
When transitioning out of incarceration, some individuals face a “gap” in access to healthcare. Correctional facilities provide healthcare to incarcerated people, but there are serious challenges in providing care continuity as they return from custody into the community. Logistical complications, compounded by other challenges of reentry, can delay and/or prevent individuals from connecting to health …
Policy Brief: A Collaborative Approach for Patients with Diabetes – Bringing Together Health Plans, Community Health Centers, and Optometrists
By California Health Policy Strategies, LLC
California Health Policy Strategies, LLC, January 23, 2019
In 2010, diabetes was the 7th leading cause of death in the US with an estimated 25.8 million of the US population (8.3 percent) having diabetes, and of these, it is estimated that 7 million cases are undiagnosed.1 It is also estimated that another 79 million adults in the US have blood sugar levels in …
Comments Regarding Prison and Jail Reentry to the Department of Health Care Services (DHCS) – Coordinated Care Assessment Project
By California Health Policy Strategies, LLC
California Health Policy Strategies, LLC, December 21, 2018
CalHPS has managed the Reentry Health Project with support from the California Health Care Foundation. Our 2017 report focused on opportunities for improving care coordination and maximization of federal funds for medically fragile and seriously mentally ill reentry populations. Additional work and analysis have helped to further refine our recommendations.
Policy Brief: Unsheltered Homeless in California – Justice System Involvement and Mental Illness
By California Health Policy Strategies, LLC
California Health Policy Strategies, LLC, November 21, 2018
It is often assumed that a significant segment of the unsheltered homeless population in California has been involved with the criminal justice system in some way and/or is mentally ill. There are no statewide data to test these assumptions. This report estimates the number of unsheltered homeless individuals who have histories criminal justice system involvement …
Policy Brief: Adult Reentry Grant Program – Overview and Recommendations for Implementation of $50 million grant program administered by the Board of State and Community Corrections (BSCC)
By California Health Policy Strategies, LLC
California Health Policy Strategies, LLC, November 19, 2018
The 2018-19 State Budget Act includes a $50 million appropriation to establish a new Adult Reentry Grant (ARG). This program provides significant resources to support the reentry of state individuals being released from prison who need housing and assistance in transitioning back to the community. This policy brief is intended to inform the discussion about …
Policy Brief: Collaborative Courts and Medication Assisted Treatment (MAT) in California
By California Health Policy Strategies, LLC
California Health Policy Strategies, LLC, November 1, 2018
This policy brief provides an overview of Medication-Assisted Treatment (MAT) in California’s collaborative courts. MAT is the leading evidence-based method for treating addiction that involves both medication and behavioral health interventions. Medications for opioid use disorder include three pharmacologic agents approved by the Food and Drug Administration: methadone, buprenorphine and naltrexone.
Orange County Mental Health Services Act Audit. Review of Finances, Decision-making & Contracting. A report presented to the Orange County Board of Supervisors. October 2018.
By California Health Policy Strategies, LLC
California Health Policy Strategies, LLC, October 29, 2018
In response to concerns about Orange County’s Mental Health Service Act (MHSA) program, the Orange County Board of Supervisors engaged California Health Policy Strategies, LLC (CalHPS) to undertake an analysis of current processes and to make recommendations for improvements. The CalHPS’s team conducted approximately 50 interviews over the past six months to gather data. Additionally, …
New Funding Opportunities for Reentry & Justice-Involved Individuals: Mental Health, Housing, and Diversion
By California Health Policy Strategies, LLC
California Health Policy Strategies, LLC, September 4, 2018
This policy brief outlines new funding provided in the 2018-19 state budget for programs aimed at addressing the pressing mental health and homelessness crisis, and new options for diversion. Also referenced are funding opportunities in the 2016-2017 and 2017-18 Budget Act. These new programs create a unique opportunity for leveraging state and local resources that …
Medi-Cal Managed Care Plans: Diabetes Care HEDIS Measures – August 2018
By California Health Policy Strategies, LLC
California Health Policy Strategies, LLC, August 27, 2018
Both Medi-Cal Managed Care plans and commercial plans are required to report common health outcome measures called HEDIS (Healthcare Effectiveness Data and Information Set) scores.
Policy Brief: Toward Universal Coverage: State Alternatives to the Federal Individual Mandate
By California Health Policy Strategies, LLC
California Health Policy Strategies, LLC, July 18, 2018
The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, signed into law at the end of 2017, included a provision that effectively eliminated the shared responsibility payment for individuals failing to maintain minimum essential coverage. Effective in 2019, the penalty associated with the shared responsibility payment is now reduced to $0.