Children and Youth Behavioral Health Initiative Fee Schedule program
Announcements
Extension of Deadline to Submit Claims for Children and Youth Behavioral Health Initiative (CYBHI) Fee Schedule Program Services
Effective January 1, 2026, local educational agencies (LEAs), public institutions of higher education (IHEs), and designated affiliated providers may submit claims for reimbursement to Carelon Behavioral Health (CBH) up to 365 days from the date services were furnished to an eligible student as part of the CYBHI Fee Schedule program. Under prior DHCS guidance, LEAs, IHEs, and, designated affiliated providers were required to submit all CYBHI Fee Schedule program claims within 180 days of the date of service to be eligible for reimbursement, unless the LEA or IHE received a “good faith exception” approval from DHCS. Read the full guidance.
Fee Schedule Cohort 6 Readiness Application is Now Live
On October 24, 2025, the Department of Health Care Services (DHCS) released the Cohort 6 Readiness Application for Local Educational Agencies (LEAs) and public Institutions of Higher Education (IHEs) to participate in the Children and Youth Behavioral Health Initiative (CYBHI) statewide multi-payer school-linked fee schedule (Fee Schedule) program and statewide provider network. LEAs and IHEs that are interested in being considered for participation and plan to begin submitting claims for the CYBHI Fee Schedule program by July 2026 are encouraged to submit an application.
The Readiness Application must be completed via SurveyMonkey by 5:00 PM on January 16, 2026. Please save your responses as you draft them as SurveyMonkey may log you out and delete your progress after 30 minutes of inactivity. Applicants may select to apply an Independent LEA/IHE, Consortium Lead, or Consortium Member. Please see the definitions below:
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Independent: You will submit data and claims directly to the Third Party Administrator (TPA), and
receive funds back from the TPA for only your LEA/IHE.
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Consortium Lead: You will submit data and claims directly to the TPA on behalf of other LEAs/IHEs, and receive the funds back for all members of your consortia.
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Consortium Member: You will not directly receive funds from the TPA. The Consortia Lead will receive funds on your behalf.
Overview of the CYBHI Fee Schedule program
As part of the Children and Youth Behavioral Health Initiative (CYBHI), the California Department of Health Care Services launched the CYBHI Fee Schedule program, a first-of-its kind effort to make it easier for students and families to get outpatient mental health and substance use disorder support when, where, and how they need it. This program creates a sustainable reimbursement pathway for Local Educational Agencies (LEAs) and public institutions of higher education (IHEs) to receive funding for services rendered at a school or school-linked site. The program sets the reimbursement rate for a certain set of outpatient, school-linked services rendered to children and youth who are:
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Under the age of 26,
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Enrolled in public TK-12 schools or institutions of higher education (e.g., California Community Colleges), and
Covered by Medi-Cal managed care plans, Medi-Cal Fee-for-Service, health care service plans, and disability insurers.
Children, youth, and families will not pay out-of-pocket expenses and there will not be any impact to their existing insurance plan nor deductibles.
Let’s work together to improve the behavioral health of children, youth, and families in California by expanding their access to youth-centered, equitable, and prevention-orientated services.
Monthly Breakdown of CYBHI Claims Submissions
Data as of December 1, 2025
- 71 LEAs/IHEs (including 5 school-linked providers) have submitted claims.
- $2.79 million in unique clean claims (includes all in-process and approved claims) have been submitted to the TPA for reimbursement.
- 37,123 claims have been reimbursed, totaling $2.71 million in new revenue for LEAs and IHEs.
- 8,354 unique students have received services submitted for reimbursement.
- 34 Managed Care Plans/Insurers are represented in the claims data.
Impact by the numbers
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⁓600 Local Educational Agencies and public Institutions of Higher Education enrolled in the CYBHI Fee Schedule program
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⁓3.6M students enrolled across participating schoolsites
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98% of counties in California represented by current participants
Current List of Participating LEAs and IHEs
CYBHI Fee Schedule Program Overview Video
Resources
Please visit the CYBHI Fee Schedule Resource Library to find essential guidance and materials to support CYBHI Fee Schedule program implementation. The library includes provider resources for LEAs/IHEs and community-based school-linked providers, onboarding modules, parent and caregiver engagement materials, and program policies.
Questions and Email Distribution
If you have any questions about the Statewide Multi-Payer School-Linked Fee Schedule, or if you would like to be added to the distribution list for newsletters and other related communications, please contact
DHCS.SBS@dhcs.ca.gov.
