Acquired brain trauma: administration.

(1) Existing law establishes the State Department of Mental Health and sets forth its powers and duties relating to the administration of programs for the delivery of mental health services, including, but not limited to, establishing the department as the agency responsible for administering a program of services for persons with acquired traumatic brain injury, as defined. This program provides for a demonstration project for postacute care for adults 18 years of age and older with an acquired traumatic brain injury, including the funding of demonstration project sites, as specified. Existing law establishes the Department of Rehabilitation and sets forth its powers and duties relating to rehabilitation services, including, but not limited to, duties related to the delivery of services for persons with acquired traumatic brain injury. This bill would remove the State Department of Mental Health as the agency responsible for administering the program of services for persons with acquired traumatic brain injury and would, instead, establish the Department of Rehabilitation as the responsible agency and would extend the existing July 1, 2012, repeal date for these provisions until July 1, 2019. This bill would delete references to the program as a demonstration project. It would, instead, dependent upon securing sources of funding for the provision of services, require the Department of Rehabilitation to fund an array of services for adults 18 years of age and older with acquired traumatic brain injury and would require the department to determine the requirements for service delivery, uniform data collection, and other aspects of program administration that service providers participating in the program must meet and to monitor and evaluate the performance of those service providers, as specified. The bill would require service providers to furnish data to the department and would require service providers wishing to continue to participate in the program after July 1, 2013, to comply with additional eligibility requirements specified by the department. Existing law establishes the Traumatic Brain Injury Fund in the State Treasury, with this fund being available for purposes of the program, upon appropriation by the Legislature. The fund receives moneys from specified fines and penalties. This bill would allow the department to use the funds in the Traumatic Brain Injury Fund to make grants to service providers for the provision of services, as specified. It would also modify requirements relating to the securing of matching funds. (2) Existing law provides for the Medi-Cal program, which is administered by the State Department of Health Care Services, pursuant to which medical benefits are provided to public assistance recipients and certain other low-income persons. The Medi-Cal program is partially governed and funded by federal Medicaid provisions. Existing law requires the department, by March 15, 2009, to submit to the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services a home- and community-based services waiver application or an amendment of the state plan for home- and community-based services, to serve at least 100 adults with acquired traumatic brain injuries who otherwise would require care in a Medi-Cal funded nursing facility or an intermediate care facility for persons with developmental disabilities. This bill would, instead, require this waiver to be submitted by March, 1, 2011.