Cecilia Aguiar-Curry
- Democratic
- Assemblymember
- District 4
Author
Existing law provides for the Medi-Cal program, which is administered by the State Department of Health Care Services, under which qualified low-income individuals receive health care services. The Medi-Cal program is, in part, governed and funded by federal Medicaid program provisions. Under existing law, Medi-Cal services may be provided pursuant to contracts with various types of managed care health plans, including through a county organized health system. Under existing law, in-person contact between a health care provider and a patient is not required under the Medi-Cal program for services appropriately provided through telehealth. Existing law provides that neither face-to-face contact nor a patient's physical presence on the premises of an enrolled community clinic is required for services provided by the clinic to a Medi-Cal beneficiary during or immediately following a proclamation declaring a state of emergency. Existing law defines "immediately following" for this purpose to mean up to 90 days following the termination of the proclaimed state of emergency, unless there are extraordinary circumstances. Under existing law, federally qualified health center (FQHC) services and rural health clinic (RHC) services are covered benefits under the Medi-Cal program, to be reimbursed, to the extent that federal financial participation is available, to providers on a per-visit basis. "Visit" is defined as a face-to-face encounter between an FQHC or RHC patient and any of specified health care professionals. Under existing law, "visit" also includes an encounter between an FQHC or RHC patient and specified medical professionals when services delivered through that interaction meet the applicable standard of care. Existing law prohibits an FQHC or RHC from establishing a new patient relationship using an audio-only synchronous interaction and authorizes the department to provide specific exceptions to that prohibition, developed in consultation with affected stakeholders and published in departmental guidance. This bill would authorize the department to authorize an FQHC or RHC to establish a new patient relationship using an audio-only synchronous interaction when the visit is related to sensitive services, as defined, and authorize an FQHC or RHC to establish a new patient relationship using an audio-only synchronous interaction when the patient requests an audio-only modality or attests they do not have access to video. Existing law provides that face-to-face contact is not required when covered health care services are provided by video synchronous interaction, audio-only synchronous interaction, remote patient monitoring, or other permissible virtual communication modalities when those services and settings meet certain criteria. Existing law, effective as specified, requires a provider furnishing services via audio-only synchronous interaction to also offer those same health care services via video synchronous interaction to preserve beneficiary choice. Existing law authorizes the department to provide specific exceptions to that requirement based on a Medi-Cal provider's access to requisite technologies, as specified. Existing law also prohibits a health care provider from establishing a new patient relationship with a Medi-Cal beneficiary via, among other interactions, telephonic (audio-only) synchronous interaction. Existing law authorizes the department to provide specific exceptions to that prohibition, as specified. This bill would authorize the department to take into consideration the availability of broadband access when providing those specific exceptions. The bill would authorize the department to authorize a health care provider to establish a new patient relationship using an audio-only synchronous interaction when the visit is related to sensitive services, as defined, and authorize a health care provider to establish a new patient relationship using an audio-only synchronous interaction when the patient requests an audio-only modality or attests they do not have access to video. This bill would incorporate additional changes to Section 14132.100 of the Welfare and Institutions Code proposed by SB 966 to be operative only if this bill and SB 966 are enacted and this bill is enacted last.
Approved by the Governor.
Chaptered by Secretary of State - Chapter 515, Statutes of 2022.
Enrolled and presented to the Governor at 4 p.m.
Senate amendments concurred in. To Engrossing and Enrolling. (Ayes 71. Noes 0.).
In Assembly. Concurrence in Senate amendments pending.
Read third time. Passed. Ordered to the Assembly. (Ayes 40. Noes 0. Page 5367.).
Ordered to special consent calendar.
Read second time. Ordered to third reading.
Read third time and amended. Ordered to second reading.
Read second time. Ordered to third reading.
Read third time and amended. Ordered to second reading.
From committee: Do pass. (Ayes 7. Noes 0.) (August 11).
Read second time. Ordered to third reading.
From committee chair, with author's amendments: Amend, and re-refer to committee. Read second time, amended, and re-referred to Com. on APPR.
In committee: Hearing postponed by committee.
From committee: Do pass and re-refer to Com. on APPR. (Ayes 10. Noes 0.) (June 29). Re-referred to Com. on APPR.
From committee chair, with author's amendments: Amend, and re-refer to committee. Read second time, amended, and re-referred to Com. on HEALTH.
In committee: Set, first hearing. Hearing canceled at the request of author.
In Senate. Read first time. To Com. on RLS. for assignment.
Read third time. Passed. Ordered to the Senate. (Ayes 78. Noes 0. Page 1744.)
Read second time. Ordered to third reading.
Read second time and amended. Ordered returned to second reading.
From committee: Amend, and do pass as amended. (Ayes 16. Noes 0.) (May 20).
In committee: Set, first hearing. Referred to APPR. suspense file.
From committee: Do pass and re-refer to Com. on APPR. (Ayes 13. Noes 0.) (April 27). Re-referred to Com. on APPR.
Coauthors revised.
From committee chair, with author's amendments: Amend, and re-refer to Com. on HEALTH. Read second time and amended.
Measure version as revised on April 15 corrected.
Coauthors revised.
From committee chair, with author's amendments: Amend, and re-refer to Com. on HEALTH. Read second time and amended.
From printer. May be heard in committee January 7.
Read first time. To print.
| Bill Text Versions | Format |
|---|---|
| AB32 | HTML |
| 12/07/20 - Introduced | |
| 02/12/21 - Amended Assembly | |
| 04/22/21 - Amended Assembly | |
| 05/24/21 - Amended Assembly | |
| 06/20/22 - Amended Senate | |
| 08/01/22 - Amended Senate | |
| 08/22/22 - Amended Senate | |
| 08/24/22 - Amended Senate | |
| 09/02/22 - Enrolled | |
| 09/25/22 - Chaptered |
| Document | Format |
|---|---|
| 04/23/21- Assembly Health | |
| 05/11/21- Assembly Appropriations | |
| 05/25/21- ASSEMBLY FLOOR ANALYSIS | |
| 06/27/22- Senate Health | |
| 08/05/22- Senate Appropriations | |
| 08/23/22- Sen. Floor Analyses | |
| 08/26/22- Sen. Floor Analyses | |
| 08/31/22- ASSEMBLY FLOOR ANALYSIS |
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