(1) Existing law establishes the Medi-Cal program, which is administered by the State Department of Health Care Services and under which qualified low-income persons receive health care benefits. The Medi-Cal program is, in part, governed and funded by federal Medicaid program provisions. Existing law establishes a schedule of benefits under the Medi-Cal program and provides for various services, including behavioral and mental health services that are rendered by Medi-Cal enrolled providers.
This bill would establish a peer support specialist certification program administered by the department.
This bill would require the department to conduct specified activities relating to the certification of peer support specialists, including establishing a certifying body to provide for a statewide certification for peer support specialists and determining curriculum and core competencies, as specified, required for certification of an individual as a peer support specialist. The bill would require the department to amend the Medicaid state plan to include a certified peer support specialist as a provider type for purposes of the Medi-Cal program and to include peer support specialist services as a distinct service type under the Medi-Cal program. The bill would require Medi-Cal reimbursement for peer support specialist services to be implemented only if, and to the extent that, federal financial participation is available and the department obtains all necessary federal approvals. The bill would authorize the department to implement, interpret, or make specific its provisions by various means, including plan letters, without taking regulatory action, until regulations are adopted, and would require the department to adopt regulations by January 1, 2022.
(2) Existing law, the Mental Health Services Act (MHSA) , an initiative measure enacted by the voters as Proposition 63 at the November 2, 2004, statewide general election, establishes the continuously appropriated Mental Health Services Fund to fund various county mental health programs. The act provides that it may be amended by the Legislature by a 2 / 3 vote of each house as long as the amendment is consistent with, and furthers the intent of, the act, and that the Legislature may also clarify procedures and terms of the act by majority vote.
This bill would authorize the department to use funding provided through the MHSA, upon appropriation and to the extent authorized by the MHSA, to fund state administrative costs related to developing and administering the peer support certification program, and would require those MHSA funds to be available for purposes of claiming federal financial participation under the Medicaid program. The bill would provide that this provision does not constitute a change in the MHSA, but is a clarification of a funding purpose that is consistent with the intent of the MHSA.