Top News
Tyler Sadwith Named State Medicaid Director
The Governor announced the appointment of Tyler Sadwith as State Medicaid Director, effective March 25. Tyler served as Deputy Director for Behavioral Health since June 2022, and as Assistant Deputy Director for BH from July 2021 through May 2022, leading DHCS' efforts to strengthen the state's behavioral health continuum of care for all Californians. Tyler led an unprecedented array of policy reforms, programs, and funding investments to strengthen behavioral health care access, quality, and service delivery for Medi-Cal members and Californians served through public programs, including helping secure several first-in-the-nation federal approvals for the California Advancing and Innovating Medi-Cal (CalAIM) Justice-Involved Initiative and contingency management; spearheading the Behavioral Health Community-Based Organized Networks of Equitable Care and Treatment (BH-CONNECT) demonstration; and guiding DHCS' implementation of the 988 expansion and Medi-Cal mobile crisis services, Community Assistance, Recovery, and Empowerment (CARE) Act, CalAIM behavioral health policies, and behavioral health facility licensing reforms.
Beverlee A. Myers Award for Excellence in Public Health
Nominations for the 2024 Beverlee A. Myers Award for Excellence in Public Health are now open. This award recognizes the contributions of public health and health care services professionals in improving the health status of everyone who calls California home and the millions who visit each year. The award will be presented to a public health professional who best exemplifies the following characteristics: dedication and accomplishment in improving the health of Californians; ability to work collaboratively and provide leadership within the public health and health service delivery communities; creative methods to promote essential public health services; and sensitivity to addressing the needs of special populations and reducing disparities in health care and health outcomes.
All nominations must be received by April 5 at 5 p.m. In your nomination email, please include the following information about the nominee: name, phone numbers (both work and mobile), email address (both work and personal), mailing address, a thorough narrative of why you are nominating the individual, and a copy of your nominee's CV or resumé. Please submit nominations and any questions to
InternalComms@cdph.ca.gov.
Program Updates
Skilled Nursing Facility (SNF) Performance Data
DHCS this week will for the first time publicly post facility-level performance data for the SNF Workforce & Quality Incentive Program (WQIP), which incentivizes facilities to improve quality of care, advance equity in health care outcomes, and invest in workforce. Performance data will be posted on the
SNF WQIP webpage. For WQIP program-related questions or concerns, please email
SNFWQIP@dhcs.ca.gov. For additional information about other nursing facility financing reform programs authorized by AB 186 (Chapter 46, Statutes of 2022), please see the
Nursing Facility Financing Reform (AB 186) webpage.
Smile, California Campaign for Medi-Cal Dental Services
On March 16, Smile, California presented at the State Migrant Parent Virtual Conference, Trabajando Juntos, Mejores Futuros Para Todos. This conference, organized by the California Department of Education, assisted about 1,000 parents of children enrolled in Migrant Education Programs by offering valuable insight into various programs, strategies, and resources. The primary goal was to empower these parents to actively engage in their children's education. The conference was mainly conducted in Spanish, including both the general sessions and workshops. A Smile, California representative presented information on dental services covered by Medi-Cal, conducted a walkthrough of the
SonrieCalifornia.org website, and answered frequently asked questions.
Change Healthcare
On February 21, Change Healthcare, a subsidiary of Optum/United Healthcare, experienced a cyberattack that took the company's systems offline. Change Healthcare is one of several vendors that routes claims between entities, such as pharmacies and dental providers, and payers.
On March 13, DHCS issued a
memo to its Medi-Cal managed care plan (MCP) partners related to flexibilities to ensure delivery system stability following the Change Healthcare cyberattack. The memo reminds MCPs of their claims payment contractual responsibilities and strongly encourages MCPs to take steps to support the provider community, including relaxing timely claim filing requirements and removing or relaxing prior authorization and other utilization management requirements, among other requests.
Medi-Cal providers continue to operate, ensuring members can make appointments to receive covered services. DHCS will continue to monitor the situation to quickly identify and mitigate any potential impacts. DHCS stands ready to help plans, providers, and stakeholders address any interruptions to care and ensure systems are fully operational to process claims.
Join Our Team
DHCS posted the following job openings:
DHCS is also hiring for communications, human resources, auditing, health policy, information technology, and other teams. For more information, please visit the
CalCareers website.
Upcoming Stakeholder Meetings and Webinars
CalAIM Intermediate Care Facility for the Developmentally Disabled Individuals (ICF/DD) Carve-In
On March 22, DHCS will host an
office hours session as part of its educational webinar series on the CalAIM ICF/DD Carve-In. The office hours provide a dedicated forum for DHCS and the Department of Developmental Services to engage with ICF/DD Homes, Regional Centers, and Medi-Cal MCP representatives to address questions related to ICF/DD Carve-In policy requirements and implementation of the transition to managed care that took effect on January 1, 2024.
Office hours participants are encouraged to submit questions to
LTCtransition@dhcs.ca.gov in advance when registering. Additional details about upcoming webinars are available on the
CalAIM ICF/DD Long-Term Care Carve-In webpage.
Coverage Ambassador Webinar
On March 28, from 11 to 11:45 a.m., DHCS will host the
“Keep Your Community Covered" Coverage Ambassador webinar (advance registration required). DHCS will provide an overview of new resources, and Coverage Ambassadors will share what they are hearing and seeing in their local communities. The group will also discuss needed resources to support Medi-Cal members with keeping their coverage. Spanish interpretation will be provided.
CalAIM Providing Access and Transforming Health (PATH) Technical Assistance (TA) Marketplace Virtual Vendor Fairs
On April 9 and 25, from 9 to 10:30 a.m., DHCS will host the final virtual
PATH TA Marketplace Vendor Fairs, where vendors pitch their organization and services to potential TA Recipients and encourage utilization of the TA Marketplace. Approved TA Recipients and organizations currently contracted with or planning to contract with a Medi-Cal MCP or other eligible entity to provide Enhanced Care Management/Community Supports are encouraged to attend.
The
April 9 Vendor Fair features vendors providing services in Domain 2: Community Supports and Domain 7: Workforce. The
April 25 Vendor Fair features vendors providing services in Domain 5: Promoting Health Equity and Domain 6: Supporting Cross-Sector Partnerships.
