Medi-Cal: designated public hospitals.

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. Existing law establishes the Medi-Cal Hospital/Uninsured Care Demonstration Project Act, which revises hospital supplemental payment methodologies under the Medi-Cal program in order to maximize the use of federal funds consistent with federal Medicaid law and to stabilize the distribution of funding for hospitals that provide care to Medi-Cal beneficiaries and uninsured patients. Existing law requires the department to seek a successor demonstration project or federal waiver of Medicaid law to implement specified objectives, which may include better care coordination for seniors, persons with disabilities, and children with special health care needs. Existing law provides that to the extent the provisions under the Medi-Cal Hospital/Uninsured Care Demonstration Project Act do not conflict with the provisions of, or the Special Terms and Conditions of, this demonstration project, the provisions of the Medi-Cal Hospital/Uninsured Care Demonstration Project Act apply. Existing law also defines designated public hospital for purposes of these provisions and requires that designated public hospitals be eligible for specified payments under the demonstration project. This bill would require the department to seek federal approval to add Doctors Medical Center, operated by West Contra Costa Healthcare District, to the list of designated public hospital for purposes of the demonstration project. The bill would provide that it is the intent of the Legislature that Doctors Medical Center be eligible for any funding available to designated public hospitals under the demonstration project. The bill would appropriate $3,000,000 from the General Fund to the West Contra Costa Healthcare District for support of the Doctors Medical Center. This bill would make legislative findings and declarations as to the necessity of a special statute relating to the Doctors Medical Center, operated by the West Contra Costa Healthcare District. This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.