CalAIM for Reentry and Justice-involved Adults and Youth: a Policy Implementation Guide

CalAIM for Reentry and Justice-involved Adults and Youth: a Policy Implementation Guide. Provides an overview of CalAIM’s key program elements relevant to justice-involved individuals and an initial implementation framework. The guide is intended as a resource for justice system agencies, Medi-Cal Managed Care Plans, providers, advocates, and other stakeholders who are key to designing and …

Policy Brief: Embedding Mental Health Clinicians in Public Defender’s Offices: A Potential CalAIM Strategy for Reducing the Mentally Ill Inmates Population in Jails

As state and local policy makers develop CalAIM action plans for local justice-involved individuals, this policy brief suggests a potential innovative strategy that places mental health clinicians in public defender’s offices to facilitate alternative placements in a community mental health treatment programs and reduce the number of incarcerated jail inmates with serious mental illness.

Policy Brief: Expanding Access to Medication Assisted Treatment (MAT) for Treatment of Opioid Use Disorder in Los Angeles County’s Criminal Justice System

Report to  the Countywide Criminal Justice Coordination Committee (CCJCC) finds key findings and recommendations about drug overdose deaths and MAT capacity in LA County.  Overdose deaths increased by 144% since 2017.  Deaths from fentanyl increased 1,114% over this same period.  The number of jail and prison individuals needing MAT in the community are projected to …

Policy Brief: The Overdose Crisis in California 2017 to 2021

Analysis of most recent overdose data finds that preventable drug-related overdose deaths have doubled since 2017.  The COVID-19 pandemic was associated with an acceleration of the overdose crisis with about 1,000 additional unpredicted deaths in 2020.  Synthetic opioids such as fentanyl were responsible for almost 5,000 more deaths in the twelve month period before June …

CalAIM Update: Summary of pricing guidelines to Medi-Cal managed care plans for Community Supports (formerly, In Lieu of Services -ILOS)

A key feature of California Advancing and Innovating Medi-Cal (CalAIM) is the introduction of a new menu of health-related Community Supports (formerly “in lieu of services” or ILOS), which offer non-clinical services to address key social determinants of health, such as housing. The Department of Health Care Services (DHCS) has pre-approved fourteen ILOS and is …

State Budget Update: 2021-2022 Housing And Behavioral Health Funding – Opportunities For Reentry & Justice-Involved Individuals August 2021

The newly enacted 2021-2022 State budget and spending package includes over $12 billion in new funding opportunities that can be leveraged to help individuals who are justice-involved, experiencing homelessness, and have behavioral health needs. This overview of also includes new program initiatives as part of the state’s Home and Community-based Services (HCBS) Waiver spending plans.

Policy Brief: CalAIM: Implications for the Dual Eligible Population

Provides overview of the CalAIM, the ambitious new multi-year proposal by the Newsom Administration to redesign the state’s Medi-Cal Program, and how it affects beneficiaries who dually eligible for both Medicare and Medi-Cal.

Policy Brief: Trends in California Overdose Deaths

Drug-related overdose fatalities have risen 50% since 2017. Overdose fatalities are rising faster in California than in the United States where overdose deaths are up 15% over the last three years.

CalAIM: Opportunities and Implications for the Reentry and Justice-Involved Population

Provides an overview of the California Department of Health Services updated proposal to re-envision the state’s Medi-Cal program, and how it specifically address the reentry/justice-involved population.  CalAIM offers a unique opportunity to improve the quality of medical and behavioral health care for this healthy vulnerable and underserved population.

The silent epidemic: drug overdose deaths surge in California pre-pandemic

Research provided by California Health Policy Strategies (CHPS) shows that the rate of increases of overdose deaths in California far surpasses the national rate of increase as of May 2020. Experts say this trend has increased as the pandemic has continued.