§ 14005.27. — 14005.27. (Amended by Stats. 2025, Ch. 105, Sec. 51.)

(a)
Individuals enrolled in the Healthy Families Program pursuant to Part 6.2 (commencing with Section 12693) of Division 2 of the Insurance Code on June 27, 2012, and who are determined eligible to receive benefits pursuant to subdivision (a) of Section 14005.26, or, effective January 1, 2014, subdivision (b) of Section 14005.26, shall be transitioned into Medi-Cal, pursuant to this section.
(b)
To the extent necessary and for the purposes of carrying out the provisions of this section, in performing initial eligibility determinations for children enrolled in the Healthy Families Program pursuant to Part 6.2 (commencing with Section 12693) of Division 2 of the Insurance Code, the department shall adopt the option pursuant to Section 1902(e)(13) of the
federal Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. Sec. 1396a(e)(13)) to allow the department or county human services departments to rely upon findings made by the Managed Risk Medical Insurance Board (MRMIB) regarding one or more components of eligibility. The department shall seek federal approval of a state plan amendment to implement this subdivision.
(c)
To the extent necessary, the department shall seek federal approval of a state plan amendment or a waiver to provide presumptive eligibility for the optional targeted low-income category of eligibility pursuant to Section 14005.26 for individuals presumptively eligible for or enrolled in the Healthy Families Program pursuant to Part 6.2 (commencing with Section 12693) of Division 2 of the Insurance Code. The presumptive eligibility shall be based upon the most recent information contained in the individual’s Healthy Families Program file. The timeframe for the presumptive eligibility shall begin no
sooner than January 1, 2013, and shall continue until a determination of Medi-Cal eligibility is made, which determination shall be performed within one year of the individual’s Healthy Families Program annual review date.
(d)
(1)
The California Health and Human Services Agency, in consultation with the Managed Risk Medical Insurance Board, the State Department of Health Care Services, the Department of Managed Health Care, and diverse stakeholders groups, shall provide the fiscal and policy committees of the Legislature with a strategic plan for the transition of the Healthy Families Program pursuant to this section by no later than October 1, 2012. This strategic plan shall, at a minimum, address all of the following:
(A)
State, county, and local administrative components that facilitate a successful subscriber transition such as communication and outreach
to subscribers and applicants, eligibility processing, enrollment, communication, and linkage with health plan providers, payments of applicable premiums, and overall systems operation functions.
(B)
Methods and processes for diverse stakeholder engagement throughout the entire transition, including all phases of the transition.
(C)
State monitoring of managed care health plans’ performance and accountability for provision of services, and initial quality indicators for children and adolescents transitioning to Medi-Cal.
(D)
Health care and dental delivery system components such as standards for informing and enrollment materials, network adequacy, performance measures and metrics, fiscal solvency, and related factors that ensure timely access to quality health and dental care for children and adolescents
transitioning to Medi-Cal.
(E)
Inclusion of applicable operational steps, timelines, and key milestones.
(F)
A time certain for the transfer of the Healthy Families Advisory Board, as described in Part 6.2 (commencing with Section 12693) of Division 2 of the Insurance Code, to the State Department of Health Care Services.
(2)
The intent of this strategic plan is to serve as an overall guide for the development of each plan for each phase of this transition, pursuant to paragraphs (1) to (8), inclusive, of subdivision (e), to ensure clarity and consistency in approach and subscriber continuity of care. This strategic plan may also be updated by the California Health and Human Services Agency as applicable and provided to the Legislature upon completion.
(e)
(1)
The department shall transition individuals from the Healthy Families Program to the Medi-Cal program in four phases, as follows:
(A)
Phase 1. Individuals enrolled in a Healthy Families Program health plan that is a Medi-Cal managed care health plan shall be enrolled in the same plan no earlier than January 1, 2013, pursuant to the requirements of this section and Section 14011.6, and to the extent the individual is otherwise eligible under this chapter and Chapter 8 (commencing with Section 14200).
(B)
Phase 2. Individuals enrolled in a Healthy Families Program managed care health plan that is a subcontractor of a Medi-Cal managed health care plan, to the extent possible, shall be enrolled into a Medi-Cal managed health care plan that includes the individuals’ current plan pursuant to the requirements of this section and Section 14011.6,
and to the extent the individuals are otherwise eligible under this chapter and Chapter 8 (commencing with Section 14200). The transition of individuals described in this subparagraph shall begin no earlier than April 1, 2013.
(C)
Phase 3. Individuals enrolled in a Healthy Families Program plan that is not a Medi-Cal managed care plan and does not contract or subcontract with a Medi-Cal managed care plan shall be enrolled in a Medi-Cal managed care plan in that county. Enrollment shall include consideration of the individuals’ primary care providers pursuant to the requirements of this section and Section 14011.6, and to the extent the individuals are otherwise eligible under this chapter and Chapter 8 (commencing with Section 14200). The transition of individuals described in this subparagraph shall begin no earlier than August 1, 2013.
(D)
Phase 4.
(i)
Individuals residing in a county that is not a Medi-Cal managed care county shall be provided services under the Medi-Cal fee-for-service delivery system, subject to clause (ii). The transition of individuals described in this subparagraph shall begin no earlier than September 1, 2013.
(ii)
In the event the department creates a managed health care system in the counties described in clause (i), individuals residing in those counties shall be enrolled in managed health care plans pursuant to this chapter and Chapter 8 (commencing with Section 14200).
(2)
For the transition of individuals pursuant to subparagraphs (A), (B), (C), and (D) of paragraph (1), implementation plans shall be developed to ensure state and county systems readiness, health plan network adequacy, and continuity of care with the goal of ensuring
there is no disruption of service and there is continued access to coverage for all transitioning individuals. If an individual is not retained with the individual’s primary care provider, the implementation plan shall require the managed care plan to report to the department as to how continuity of care is being provided. Transition of individuals described in subparagraphs (A), (B), (C), and (D) of paragraph (1) shall not occur until 90 days after the department has submitted an implementation plan to the fiscal and policy committees of the Legislature. The implementation plans shall include, but not be limited to, information on health and dental plan network adequacy, continuity of care, eligibility and enrollment requirements, consumer protections, and family notifications.
(3)
The following requirements shall be in place prior to implementation of Phase 1, and shall be required for all phases of the transition:
(A)
Managed care plan performance measures shall be integrated and coordinated with the Healthy Families Program performance standards including, but not limited to, child-only Healthcare Effectiveness Data and Information Set (HEDIS) measures, and measures indicative of performance in serving children and adolescents. These performance measures shall also be in compliance with all performance requirements under the Knox-Keene Health Care Service Plan Act of 1975 (Chapter 2.2 (commencing with Section 1340) of Division 2 of the Health and Safety Code) and existing Medi-Cal managed care performance measurements and standards as set forth in this chapter and Chapter 8 (commencing with Section
14200), and all-plan letters, including, but not limited to, network adequacy and linguistic services, and shall be met prior to the transition of individuals pursuant to Phase 1.
(B)
Medi-Cal managed care health plans shall allow enrollees to remain with their current primary care provider. If an individual does not remain with the current primary care provider, the plan shall report to the department as to how continuity of care is being provided.
(4)
(A)
As individuals are transitioned pursuant to subparagraphs (A), (B), (C), and (D) of paragraph (1), for individuals residing in all counties except the Counties of Sacramento and Los Angeles, their dental coverage shall transition to fee-for-service dental coverage and may be provided by their current provider if the provider is a Medi-Cal fee-for-service dental
provider.
(B)
For individuals residing in the County of Sacramento, their dental coverage shall continue to be provided by their current dental managed care plan if their plan is a Medi-Cal dental managed care plan. If their plan is not a Medi-Cal dental managed care plan, they shall select a Medi-Cal dental managed care plan. If they do not choose a Medi-Cal dental managed care plan, they shall be assigned to a plan with preference to a plan with which their current provider is a contracted provider. Any children in the Healthy Families Program transitioned into Medi-Cal dental managed care plans shall also have access to the beneficiary dental exception process, pursuant to Section 14089.09. Further, the Sacramento advisory committee, established pursuant to Section 14089.08, shall be consulted regarding the transition of children in the Healthy Families Program into Medi-Cal dental managed care plans.
(C)
(i)
For individuals residing in the County of Los Angeles, for purposes of continuity of care, their dental coverage shall continue to be provided by their current dental managed care plan if that plan is a Medi-Cal dental managed care plan. If their plan is not a Medi-Cal dental managed care plan, they may select a Medi-Cal dental managed care plan or choose to move into Medi-Cal fee-for-service dental coverage.
(ii)
It is the intent of the Legislature that children transitioning to Medi-Cal under this section have a choice in dental coverage, as provided under existing law.
(5)
Dental health plan performance measures and benchmarks shall be in accordance with Section 14459.6.
(6)
Medi-Cal managed care health and dental plans
shall report to the department, as frequently as specified by the department, specified information pertaining to transition implementation, enrollees, and providers, including, but not limited to, grievances related to access to care, continuity of care requests and outcomes, and changes to provider networks, including provider enrollment and disenrollment changes. The plans shall report this information by county, and in the format requested by the department.
(7)
The department may develop supplemental implementation plans to separately account for the transition of individuals from the Healthy Families Program to specific Medi-Cal delivery systems.
(8)
The department shall consult with the Legislature and stakeholders, including, but not limited to, consumers, families, consumer advocates, counties, providers, and health and dental plans, in the development of implementation
plans described in paragraph (3) for individuals who are transitioned to Medi-Cal in Phase 2, Phase 3, and Phase 4, as described in subparagraphs (B), (C), and (D) of paragraph (1).
(9)
(A)
The department shall consult and collaborate with the Department of Managed Health Care in assessing Medi-Cal managed care health plan network adequacy in accordance with the Knox-Keene Health Care Service Plan Act of 1975 (Chapter 2.2 (commencing with Section 1340) of Division 2 of the Health and Safety Code) for purposes of the developed transition plans pursuant to paragraph (2) for each of the phases.
(B)
For purposes of individuals transitioning in Phase 1, as described in subparagraph (A) of paragraph (1), network adequacy shall be assessed as described in this paragraph and findings from this assessment shall be provided to the fiscal and appropriate policy
committees of the Legislature 60 days prior to the effective date of implementing this transition.
(f)
(1)
The department and MRMIB shall work collaboratively in the development of notices for individuals transitioned pursuant to paragraph (1) of subdivision (e).
(2)
The state shall provide written notice to individuals enrolled in the Healthy Families Program of their transition to the Medi-Cal program at least 60 days prior to the transition of individuals in Phase 1, as described in subparagraph (A) of paragraph (1) of subdivision (e), and at least 90 days prior to transition of individuals in Phases 2, 3, and 4, as described in subparagraphs (B), (C), and (D) of paragraph (1) of subdivision (e).
(3)
Notices developed pursuant to this subdivision shall ensure individuals are informed regarding the transition, including, but not limited to, how individuals’ systems of care may change, when the changes will occur, and whom they can contact for assistance when choosing
a Medi-Cal managed care plan, if applicable, including a toll-free telephone number, and with problems they may encounter. The department shall consult with stakeholders regarding notices developed pursuant to this subdivision. These notices shall be developed using plain language, and written translation of the notices shall be available for those who are limited English proficient or non-English speaking in all Medi-Cal threshold languages.
(4)
The department shall designate department liaisons responsible for the coordination of the Healthy Families Program and may establish a children’s-focused section for this purpose and to facilitate the provision of health care services for children enrolled in Medi-Cal.
(5)
The department shall provide a process for ongoing stakeholder consultation and make information publicly available, including the achievement of benchmarks,
enrollment data, utilization data, and quality measures.
(g)
(1)
In order to aid the transition of Healthy Families Program enrollees, MRMIB, on the effective date of the act that added this section and continuing through the completion of the transition of Healthy Families Program enrollees to the Medi-Cal program, shall begin requesting and collecting from health plans contracting with MRMIB pursuant to Part 6.2 (commencing with Section 12693) of Division 2 of the Insurance Code, information about each health plan’s provider network, including, but not limited to, the primary care and all specialty care providers assigned to individuals enrolled in the health plan. MRMIB shall obtain this information in a manner that coincides with the transition activities described in subdivision (d), and shall provide all of the collected information to the department within 60 days of the department’s request for this information to
ensure timely transitions of Healthy Families Program enrollees.
(2)
The department shall analyze the existing Healthy Families Program delivery system network and the Medi-Cal fee-for-service provider networks, including, but not limited to, Medi-Cal dental providers, to determine overlaps of the provider networks in each county for which there are no Medi-Cal managed care plans or dental managed care plans. To the extent there is a lack of existing Medi-Cal fee-for-service providers available to serve the Healthy Families Program enrollees, the department shall work with the Healthy Families Program provider community to encourage participation of those providers in the Medi-Cal program, and develop a streamlined process to enroll them as Medi-Cal providers.
(3)
(A)
MRMIB, within 60 days of a request by the department, shall provide the department any data,
information, or record concerning the Healthy Families Program as is necessary to implement the transition of enrollment required pursuant to this section.
(B)
Notwithstanding any other law, all of the following shall apply:
(i)
The term “data, information, or record” shall include, but is not limited to, personal information as defined in Section 1798.3 of the Civil Code.
(ii)
Any data, information, or record shall be exempt from disclosure under the California Public Records Act (Division 10 (commencing with Section 7920.000) of Title 1 of the Government Code) and any other law, to the same extent that it was exempt from disclosure or privileged prior to the provision of the data, information, or record to the department.
(iii)
The provision of this
data, information, or record to the department shall not constitute a waiver of any evidentiary privilege or exemption from disclosure.
(iv)
The department shall keep all data, information, or records provided by MRMIB confidential to the full extent permitted by law, including, but not limited to, the California Public Records Act (Division 10 (commencing with Section 7920.000) of Title 1 of the Government Code), and consistent with MRMIB’s contractual obligations to keep the data, information, or records confidential.
(h)
This section shall be implemented only to the extent that all necessary federal approvals and waivers have been obtained and the enhanced rate of federal financial participation under Title XXI of the federal Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. Sec. 1397aa et seq.) is available for targeted low-income children pursuant to that act.
(i)
(1)
(A)
Except as provided in subparagraph (B), the department shall exercise the option pursuant to Section 1916A of the federal Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. Sec. 1396o-1) to impose premiums for individuals described in subdivision (a) of Section 14005.26 whose family income has been determined to be above 150 percent and up to and including 200 percent of the federal poverty level, after application of the income disregard pursuant to paragraph (2) of subdivision (a) of Section 14005.26. The department shall not impose premiums under this subdivision for individuals described in subdivision (a) of Section 14005.26 whose family income has been determined to be at or below 150 percent of the federal poverty level, after application of the income disregard pursuant to paragraph (2) of subdivision (a) of Section 14005.26. The department shall obtain federal approval for the implementation of this
subdivision.
(B)
Effective January 1, 2014, the family income range for the imposition of premiums pursuant to subparagraph (A) for individuals described in subdivision (a) or (b) of Section 14005.26 shall be above 160 percent and shall go up to and include 261 percent of the federal poverty level as determined, counted, and valued in accordance with the requirements of Section 14005.64. The department shall not impose premiums for eligible individuals whose family income has been determined to be at or below 160 percent of the federal poverty level.
(2)
All premiums imposed under this section shall equal the family contributions described in paragraph (2) of subdivision (d) of Section 12693.43 of the Insurance Code and shall be reduced in conformity with subdivisions (e) and (f) of Section 12693.43 of the Insurance Code.
(j)
The department shall not enroll targeted low-income children described in this section in the Medi-Cal program until all necessary federal approvals and waivers have been obtained, or no sooner than January 1, 2013.
(k)
(1)
(A)
Except as provided in subparagraph (B), to the extent the new budget methodology pursuant to paragraph (6) of subdivision (a) of Section 14154 is not fully operational, for the purposes of implementing this section, for individuals described in subdivision (a) whose family income has been determined to be at or below 150 percent of the federal poverty level, after application of the disregard pursuant to paragraph (2) of subdivision (a) of Section 14005.26, the department shall utilize the budgeting methodology for this population as contained in the November 2011 Medi-Cal Local Assistance Estimate for Medi-Cal county administration costs for eligibility
operations.
(B)
Effective January 1, 2014, the federal poverty level percentage used under subparagraph (A) for individuals described in subdivision (a) shall equal 160 percent of the federal poverty level as determined, counted, and valued in accordance with the requirements of Section 14005.64.
(2)
(A)
Except as provided in subparagraph (B), for purposes of implementing this section, the department shall include in the Medi-Cal Local Assistance Estimate an amount for Medi-Cal eligibility operations associated with the transfer of Healthy Families Program enrollees eligible pursuant to subdivision (a) of Section 14005.26 and whose family income is determined to be above 150 percent and up to and including 200 percent of the federal poverty level, after application of the income disregard pursuant to paragraph (2) of subdivision (a) of Section 14005.26. In
developing an estimate for this activity, the department shall consider the projected number of final eligibility determinations each county will process and projected county costs. Within 60 days of the passage of the annual Budget Act, the department shall notify each county of their allocation for this activity based upon the amount allotted in the annual Budget Act for this purpose.
(B)
Effective January 1, 2014, for purposes of implementing this section, the department shall include in the Medi-Cal Local Assistance Estimate an amount for Medi-Cal eligibility operations associated with the transfer of Healthy Families Program enrollees eligible pursuant to subdivision (a) or (b) of Section 14005.26 and whose family income is determined to be above 160 percent and up to and including 261 percent of the federal poverty level.
(l)
When the new budget methodology pursuant to
paragraph (6) of subdivision (a) of Section 14154 is fully operational, the new budget methodology shall be utilized to reimburse counties for eligibility determinations made for individuals pursuant to this section.
(m)
Except as provided in subdivision (b), eligibility determinations and annual redeterminations made pursuant to this section shall be performed by county eligibility workers.
(n)
In conducting the eligibility determinations for individuals pursuant to this section and Section 14005.26, the following reporting and performance standards shall apply to all counties:
(1)
Counties shall report to the department, in a manner and for a time period determined by the department, in consultation with the County Welfare Directors Association, the number of applications processed on a monthly basis, a breakout of
the applications based on income using the federal percentage of poverty levels, the final disposition of each application, including information on the approved Medi-Cal program, if applicable, and the average number of days it took to make the final eligibility determination for applications submitted directly to the county and from the single point of entry (SPE).
(2)
Notwithstanding any other law, the following performance standards shall be applied to counties for eligibility determinations for individuals eligible pursuant to this section:
(A)
For children whose applications are received by the county human services department from the SPE, the following standards shall apply:
(i)
Applications for children who are granted accelerated enrollment by the SPE shall be processed according to the timeframes specified
in subdivision (d) of Section 14154.
(ii)
Applications for children who are not granted accelerated enrollment by the SPE due to the existence of an already active Medi-Cal case shall be processed according to the timeframes specified in subdivision (d) of Section 14154.
(iii)
For applications for children who are not described in clause (i) or (ii), 90 percent shall be processed within 10 working days of being received, complete and without client errors.
(iv)
If an application described in this section also contains adults, and the adult applicants are required to submit additional information beyond the information provided for the children, the county shall process the eligibility for the child or children without delay, consistent with this section while gathering the necessary information to process eligibility
for the adults.
(B)
The department, in consultation with the County Welfare Directors Association, shall develop reporting requirements for the counties to provide regular data to the state regarding the timeliness and outcomes of applications processed by the counties that are received from the SPE.
(C)
Performance thresholds and corrective action standards as set forth in Section 14154 shall apply.
(D)
For applications received directly by the county, these applications shall be processed by the counties in accordance with the performance standards established under subdivision (d) of Section 14154.
(3)
This subdivision shall be implemented no sooner than January 1, 2013.
(4)
Twelve
months after implementation of this section pursuant to subdivision (e), the department shall provide enrollment information regarding individuals determined eligible pursuant to subdivision (a) to the fiscal and appropriate policy committees of the Legislature.
(o)
(1)
Notwithstanding Chapter 3.5 (commencing with Section 11340) of Part 1 of Division 3 of Title 2 of the Government Code, for purposes of this transition, the department, without taking any further regulatory action, shall implement, interpret, or make specific this section by means of all-county letters, plan letters, plan or provider bulletins, or similar instructions until the time regulations are adopted. It is the intent of the Legislature that the department be allowed temporary authority as necessary to implement program changes until completion of the regulatory process.
(2)
To the extent
otherwise required by Chapter 3.5 (commencing with Section 11340) of Part 1 of Division 3 of Title 2 of the Government Code, the department shall adopt emergency regulations implementing this section no later than July 1, 2014. The department may thereafter readopt the emergency regulations pursuant to that chapter. The adoption and readoption, by the department, of regulations implementing this section shall be deemed to be an emergency and necessary to avoid serious harm to the public peace, health, safety, or general welfare for purposes of Sections 11346.1 and 11349.6 of the Government Code, and the department is hereby exempted from the requirement that it describe facts showing the need for immediate action and from review by the Office of Administrative Law.
(p)
To implement this section, the department may enter into and continue contracts with the Healthy Families Program administrative vendor, for the purposes of implementing and
maintaining the necessary systems and activities for providing health care coverage to optional targeted low-income children in the Medi-Cal program for purposes of accelerated enrollment application processing by single point of entry, noneligibility-related case maintenance and premium collection, maintenance of the Health-E-App web portal, call center staffing and operations, certified application assistant services, and reporting capabilities. To further implement this section, the department may also enter into a contract with the Health Care Options Broker of the department for purposes of managed care enrollment activities. The contracts entered into or amended under this section may initially be completed on a noncompetitive bid basis and are exempt from the Public Contract Code. Contracts thereafter shall be entered into or amended on a competitive bid basis and shall be subject to the Public Contract Code.
(q)
(1)
If at any time the director determines that this section or any part of this section may jeopardize the state’s ability to receive federal financial participation under the federal Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (Public Law 111-148), or any amendment or extension of that act, or any additional federal funds that the director, in consultation with the Department of Finance, determines would be advantageous to the state, the director shall give notice to the fiscal and policy committees of the Legislature and to the Department of Finance. After giving notice, this section or any part of this section shall become inoperative on the date that the director executes a declaration stating that the department has determined, in consultation with the Department of Finance, that it is necessary to cease to implement this section or a part or parts thereof in order to receive federal financial participation, any increase in the federal medical assistance percentage available on or after
October 1, 2008, or any additional federal funds that the director, in consultation with the Department of Finance, has determined would be advantageous to the state.
(2)
The director shall retain the declaration described in paragraph (1), shall provide a copy of the declaration to the Secretary of State, the Secretary of the Senate, the Chief Clerk of the Assembly, and the Legislative Counsel, and shall post the declaration on the department’s internet website.
(3)
In the event that the director makes a determination under paragraph (1) and this section ceases to be implemented, the children shall be enrolled back into the Healthy Families Program.

Legislative History

Amended by Stats. 2025, Ch. 105, Sec. 51. (AB 144) Effective September 17, 2025. Conditionally inoperative as provided in subd. (q).