CaliforniaMedi-Cal: Home and Community-Based Alternatives Waiver.
What it does
Existing law establishes the Medi-Cal program, which is administered by the State Department of Health Care Services and under which qualified low-income individuals receive health care services. The Medi-Cal program is in part governed by, and funded pursuant to, federal Medicaid program provisions.
More detail
Under existing law, home- and community-based services (HCBS) approved by the United States Department of Health and Human Services are covered for eligible individuals to the extent that federal financial participation is available for those services under the state plan or waivers granted in accordance with certain federal provisions. Existing law authorizes the Director of Health Care Services to seek waivers for any or all approvable HCBS.
Existing law sets forth provisions for the implementation of the Nursing Facility/Acute Hospital Transition and Diversion Waiver, which is the predecessor of the Home and Community-Based Alternatives (HCBA) Waiver, for purposes of providing care management services to individuals who are at risk of nursing facility or institutional placement, subject to federal cost neutrality. Existing law authorizes the director to propose that the waiver provide for achievement of annual cost neutrality in the aggregate to allow enrollment and authorization of waiver services based on medical necessity, and to require care management contractors to enroll at least 60% of all total annual enrollments from certain health care settings or populations. Existing law additionally sets forth provisions authorizing the director to expand the number of waiver slots up to 5,000 additional slots.
This bill would recast the above-described waiver provisions to refer to the HCBA Waiver. The bill would authorize the director, beginning January 1, 2027, to semiannually evaluate the populations receiving the priority enrollment described above, and to designate additional populations to receive priority enrollment based on this evaluation, subject to applicable cost-neutrality requirements. The bill would delete the provision relating to the 5,000 slots. The bill would instead require the department, beginning in 2027, and for the HCBA Waiver period, to increase the total number of waiver slots by 5,000, in addition to any planned expansion of waiver slots federally approved as of January 1, 2026, as specified, consistent with the above-described requirements.
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Where it stands
- Introduced
- Passed Assembly
- Passed Senate
- To Governor
- Became Law
Looking ahead
No hearings or votes scheduled.
History
- 2026
- Sep 18Vetoed by Governor Gavin Newsom.Latest
- Sep 8Enrolled and presented to the Governor at 3:30 p.m.To Governor
- Aug 28Senate amendments concurred in. To Engrossing and Enrolling. (Ayes 77. Noes 0. Page 6805.).Major
- Vote recorded AB 2081 Stefani Concurrence in Senate Amendments. Result: pass.Lower
- Aug 27In Assembly. Concurrence in Senate amendments pending.
- Vote recorded Special Consent AB2081 Stefani et al. Result: pass.Upper
- Aug 27Read third time. Passed. Ordered to the Assembly. (Ayes 39. Noes 0.).Passed Senate
- Aug 25Ordered to special consent calendar.
- Aug 17Read second time. Ordered to third reading.Minor
- Aug 13Read second time and amended. Ordered returned to second reading.Major
- Vote recorded Do pass as amended. Result: pass.Upper
- Aug 13From committee: Amend, and do pass as amended. (Ayes 7. Noes 0.) (August 13).Major
- Jun 29In committee: Referred to APPR. suspense file.Minor
- Vote recorded Placed on suspense file. Result: pass.Upper
- Jun 18From committee: Do pass and re-refer to Com. on APPR. with recommendation: To Consent Calendar. (Ayes 11. Noes 0.) (June 17). Re-referred to Com. on APPR.Minor
- Jun 17
- Vote recorded Do pass, but first be re-referred to the Committee on [Appropriations] with the recommendation: To Consent Calendar. Result: pass.Upper
- Jun 3Referred to Com. on HEALTH.Minor
- May 22In Senate. Read first time. To Com. on RLS. for assignment.Minor
- Vote recorded AB 2081 Stefani Assembly Third Reading. Result: pass.Lower
- May 22Read third time. Passed. Ordered to the Senate. (Ayes 73. Noes 0. Page 5263.)Passed Assembly
- May 18Read second time. Ordered to third reading.Minor
- May 14From committee: Do pass. (Ayes 15. Noes 0.) (May 14).Minor
- Vote recorded Do pass. Result: pass.Lower
- May 14Coauthors revised.
- Apr 8In committee: Set, first hearing. Referred to APPR. suspense file.Minor
- Apr 6Re-referred to Com. on APPR.Minor
- Mar 26Read second time and amended.Major
- Mar 25From committee: Amend, and do pass as amended and re-refer to Com. on APPR. with recommendation: To Consent Calendar. (Ayes 16. Noes 0.) (March 24).Major
- Mar 24
- Vote recorded Do pass as amended, and be re-referred to the Committee on [Appropriations] with recommendation: To Consent Calendar. Result: pass.Lower
- Mar 2Referred to Com. on HEALTH.Minor
- Feb 19From printer. May be heard in committee March 21.
- Feb 18Read first time. To print.Introduced