Medi-Cal: telehealth.

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. The Medi-Cal program is, in part, governed and funded by federal Medicaid program provisions. Under existing law, in-person, face-to-face contact is not required under the Medi-Cal program when covered health care services are provided by video synchronous interaction, audio-only synchronous interaction, remote patient monitoring, or other permissible virtual communication modalities, when those services and settings meet certain criteria. This bill would require the department to, by October 1, 2025, produce a public report on telehealth in the Medi-Cal program that includes analyses of, among other things, (1) telehealth access and utilization, (2) the effect of telehealth on timeliness of, access to, and quality of care, and (3) the effect of telehealth on clinical outcomes, as specified. The bill would authorize the department, in collaboration with the California Health and Human Services Agency, to issue policy recommendations based on the report's findings.