TO: Board of Supervisors
FROM: Dina Jose, Director of Corrections
REPORT BY: Sue Kuss, Staff Services Manager
SUBJECT: Accept CalAIM Path Justice-Involved Grant from Department of Health Care Services (DHCS)
RECOMMENDATION
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Accept grant funding from the California Department of Health Care Services (DHCS) and approve a Budget Amendment, for the term April 1, 2024, through submission of the final progress report to implement targeted pre-release Medi-Cal services to incarcerate persons. (Fiscal Impact $3,500,000 revenue, General Fund, Not budgeted; Discretionary)
[4/5 vote required]
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BACKGROUND
According to DHCS, approximately 400,000 individuals are released from correctional facilities each year. Of these individuals, 80-90% are eligible for Medi-Cal. Formerly incarcerated persons (IP) are more likely to experience poor health outcomes and face disproportionately higher rates of physical and behavioral health diagnoses. They are also at higher risk for overdose and suicide.
DHCS received federal approval under its California Advancing and Innovating Medi-Cal (CalAIM) 1115 Demonstration for Providing Access and Transferring Health (PATH) capacity building funds to support this justice-involved re-entry initiative. The CalAIM initiative aims to improve health outcomes of this community by connecting incarcerated persons with medical, behavioral, and social services that begin 90 days before release and continue into the incarcerated person's re-entry to the community. Correctional facilities must implement CalAIM no later than October 1, 2026.
As a first step of the CalAIM initiative, the Corrections Department and Health & Human Services Administration (HHSA) worked together to implement a pre-release Medi-Cal application process by January 1, 2023. Work now begins on the enhanced care management component required by CalAIM. It is the intention of the Corrections Department to contract with the County's provider of inmate ward health care...
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