Medi-Cal: podiatric services.

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, including podiatric services. The Medi-Cal program is, in part, governed and funded by federal Medicaid program provisions. Existing law does not require prior authorization for podiatric services provided on an outpatient or inpatient basis, but podiatric services are subject to the same Medi-Cal billing and services policies as required for a physician and surgeon, including a maximum numerical service limitation in any one calendar month. Existing law requires a health care provider applying for enrollment as a Medi-Cal services provider or a current Medi-Cal services provider applying for continuing enrollment, or a current Medi-Cal services provider applying for enrollment at a new location or a change in location, to submit a complete application package. Under existing law, a licensed physician and surgeon practicing as an individual physician practice or a licensed dentist practicing as an individual dentist practice, who is in good standing and enrolled as a Medi-Cal services provider, and who is changing the location of that individual practice within the same county, is eligible to instead file a change of location form in lieu of submitting a complete application package. This bill would make conforming changes to the provisions that govern applying to be a provider in the Medi-Cal program, or for a change of location by an existing provider, to include a doctor of podiatric medicine licensed by the California Board of Podiatric Medicine.