Health care coverage: information to students.

Existing law establishes the California State University, under the administration of the Trustees of the California State University, and the California Community Colleges, under the administration of the Board of Governors of the California Community Colleges, as 2 of the 3 segments of public postsecondary education in this state. Existing law establishes community college districts throughout the state and authorizes them to provide instruction to students at community college campuses. Existing law, the federal Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) , requires an applicable individual to ensure that he or she, and any dependent of that individual, has minimum essential health care coverage. This bill would establish the California Health Care Coverage Act of 2016, which would require the California State University and the California Community Colleges to provide their students information about insurance affordability programs commencing with the 2017–18 academic year. The act would authorize each campus of the California State University and the California Community Colleges to meet this requirement by developing an informational item or amending an existing enrollment form or Internet Web site to provide students information about insurance affordability programs, as specified. The act would authorize each campus to also meet this requirement by including a factsheet with its enrollment forms explaining basic information about insurance affordability programs for students. The bill would repeal these new provisions on January 1, 2021. By requiring community colleges to perform additional duties, this bill would impose a state-mandated local program. Existing law requires a public school, for purposes of the 2015–16, 2016–17, and 2017–18 school years, to add an informational item to its enrollment forms, or amend an existing enrollment form, in order to provide the parent or legal guardian information about health care coverage options and enrollment assistance, as specified. Existing law authorizes a school to also include a factsheet with its enrollment forms. Existing law requires the State Department of Education to, among other things, develop a standardized template for the factsheet and the informational item or amendment and make those templates available on its Internet Web site on or before August 1, 2015. Existing law repeals these provisions on January 1, 2019. This bill would make the repeal date for these provisions January 1, 2021, and thereby extend these requirements until that date. By extending these duties on local school districts, the bill would impose a state-mandated local program. The California Constitution requires the state to reimburse local agencies and school districts for certain costs mandated by the state. Statutory provisions establish procedures for making that reimbursement. This bill would provide that, if the Commission on State Mandates determines that the bill contains costs mandated by the state, reimbursement for those costs shall be made pursuant to these statutory provisions.