In-home supportive services and waiver personal care services.

Existing law establishes the In-Home Supportive Services (IHSS) program, which is administered by the State Department of Social Services, counties, and other entities, under which qualified aged, blind, or disabled persons are provided with supportive services in order to permit them to remain in their own homes. Existing law establishes 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. Existing law authorizes certain Medi-Cal recipients to receive waiver personal care services (WPCS) in order to permit them to remain in their own homes. Existing law sets forth various provisions relating to the determination of IHSS and WPCS provider wages. Under existing law, payments to IHSS and WPCS providers are made through the Case Management Information and Payrolling System (CMIPS) . Existing law sets forth the mechanisms for declaring a state of emergency or local emergency by certain public officials and the powers granted during those periods. This bill would require a wage differential to be granted to an IHSS or WPCS provider during a declared state of emergency or local emergency that is caused by a natural disaster. The bill would require the wage differential to result in an increase of at least $2 per hour over the county's current hourly wage rate for IHSS and WPCS providers. The bill would require the wage differential to be issued by the department through CMIPS and automatically be applied to a provider's existing hourly wage. Under the bill, the wage differential would be applied when the department is notified that a state of emergency or local emergency is declared and would be eliminated when the department receives notice that the declared state of emergency or local emergency is no longer in effect.