October 20, 2025
Top News
The Fierce Urgency for Community Partnerships: Webinar
On October 30, from 12 to 1:30 p.m. PDT, DHCS will host a webinar, “
The Fierce Urgency for Community Partnerships" (advance registration required). DHCS Director Michelle Baass will provide opening remarks, setting the stage for a conversation about how California is advancing health equity and improving outcomes by partnering across sectors and centering community voices. Leadership from DHCS and the California Department of Public Health will provide an overview of California's health care delivery transformation journey, share updates on initiatives that improve accountability, community engagement, and transparency, and discuss recent efforts to strengthen and align community planning and community investments across public health, managed care, and behavioral health. All are welcome to attend.
Introducing the Medi-Cal Voices and Vision Council
On September 24, DHCS convened the inaugural meeting of the
Medi-Cal Voices and Vision Council alongside the established
Medi-Cal Member Advisory Committee (MMAC), supporting a new, collaborative structure for shaping Medi-Cal policy. The Voices and Vision Council is a
first-of-its-kind advisory body that brings together Medi-Cal members, caregivers, providers, community-based organizations, advocacy groups, and county partners to provide direct input on Medi-Cal policies, programs, and implementation. It serves as California's federally required Medicaid Advisory Committee, while the MMAC fulfills the role of the Beneficiary Advisory Council.
These groups will meet quarterly with DHCS leadership to form a continuous feedback loop: The MMAC meets first to elevate themes and priorities from members and caregivers, which then inform the Voices and Vision Council's policy and operational discussions. This structure ensures that lived experience and system expertise come together to co-design solutions that improve how Medi-Cal serves California's diverse communities.
Program Updates
Justice-Involved Member Screening Portal
In support of the Justice-Involved (JI) Reentry Initiative, DHCS launched the JI Screening Portal in October 2024. Following the launch, DHCS worked with county partners to identify options for improving the screening portal. In September, DHCS released the Bulk Upload Tool (also known as Multiple Member Screening) to improve the user experience for counties offering JI pre-release Medi-Cal services. This new enhanced feature allows county partners to upload up to 200 entries at once for three key transaction types: activate, inquire, and terminate. Counties participating in the JI Reentry Initiative reported that the tool can significantly improve their daily workflows. DHCS hosted multiple meetings to introduce the tool and gather feedback, which continues to inform future improvements. Phase 2, planned for January 2026, will expand the tool to include pause, reset, restart, and deny transactions, further enhancing efficiency and supporting continuous quality improvement. For more information, please see the
JI Reentry Initiative: Multiple Member Screening article, or contact
Benita Arevalo or
Kasandra Soto.
California Launches Funding for “Representative Research" to Advance Health Equity in Precision Medicine
California is investing in innovative precision medicine research that includes and benefits all Californians, especially communities historically underrepresented in biomedical research. Through the
California Initiative to Advance Precision Medicine (CIAPM), new funding opportunities aim to reduce health disparities and increase diversity in research participation. CIAPM is releasing two Requests for Applications (RFA):
- Doctoral Student Awards: About $2.3 million will support 15 doctoral students conducting representative precision medicine research over 2.5 years.
- Partnership Awards: Up to $6 million will fund 3–5 interdisciplinary teams that build authentic partnerships between institutions and communities.
These projects will generate or integrate datasets to develop inclusive, data-driven solutions that improve health outcomes across California. Doctoral students, who make up more than half of California's biomedical research workforce, often bring diverse perspectives and focus on issues relevant to their communities. Applications for the Doctoral Student RFA are due by January 30, 2026. For the Partnership RFA, Letters of Intent are due by November 21, 2025, and applications are due by January 23, 2026. For eligibility details and application instructions, visit the
CIAPM website or contact
ciapm@chhs.ca.gov.
Join Our Team
DHCS is seeking a talented and motivated individual to serve as:
- Chief, Managed Care Quality and Monitoring Division. The Chief is responsible for leading and overseeing compliance-related activities for Medi-Cal managed care plans (MCP). Activities include, but are not limited to, partnering with health care professionals to develop and implement statewide MCP policies, processes, and change management efforts, as well as providing technical assistance and conducting risk analysis for audit and compliance programs related to MCPs. A higher salary range is available for a licensed physician. Applications must be submitted by November 7.
DHCS is also hiring for its Office of Legal Services,
Communications, Contract and Enrollment Review Division, Data-Driven Monitoring Section, and other teams. For more information, please visit the
CalCareers website.
Upcoming Stakeholder Meetings and Webinars
DHCS posts upcoming public meetings on the DHCS
Calendar of Events. DHCS provides free assistive services, including language interpretation, real-time captioning, and alternate formatting of meeting materials. To request services, please email DHCS at the appropriate contact email address at least ten working days before the meeting.
Behavioral Health Transformation Quality and Equity Advisory Committee: Webinar
On October 21, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. PDT, DHCS will host the eighth
Behavioral Health Transformation Quality and Equity Advisory Committee (QEAC) public webinar (advance registration required). During the meeting, committee members will collaborate and provide feedback on DHCS' work to measure and evaluate the quality and efficacy of behavioral health services and programs in California. Attendees can provide direct input to DHCS using the Q&A feature. Visit the Behavioral Health Transformation
Stakeholder Engagement webpage for more information about the QEAC webinars and additional resources. Please send any questions related to Behavioral Health Transformation and/or the QEAC webinars to
BHTinfo@dhcs.ca.gov.
ACES Aware Learning Center Webinar
On October 23, from 12 to 1 p.m. PDT, DHCS' ACEs Aware initiative will hold a
webinar, California Providers: Support Youth Behavioral Health with These Free Digital Tools (advance registration required). As part of the Implementation with Intention series, the ACEs Aware Learning Center will feature the Behavioral Health Virtual Services Platforms developed through the Children and Youth Behavioral Health Initiative, which include
Mirror,
Soluna, and
BrightLife Kids. The presentations will include insights on how these platforms can be integrated into care pathways, enhance engagement with young populations, and extend the reach of behavioral health services across diverse communities.
Strengthening Connections with Children and Youth Best Practices: Webinar
On October 24, from 10 to 11 a.m. PDT, DHCS will host a public webinar,
Strengthening Connections with Children and Youth Providers (advance registration required). The webinar is part of a series of Providing Access and Transforming Health (PATH) Collaborative Planning and Implementation (CPI) webinars designed to highlight best practices for implementing Enhanced Care Management (ECM) and Community Supports, increase providers' successful participation in California Advancing and Innovating Medi-Cal (CalAIM), and improve collaboration with Medi-Cal health plans, state and local government agencies, and others to build and deliver quality benefits and services to Medi-Cal members. The webinar will demonstrate how First 5 programs across California are working with ECM and Community Supports services and providers and explain how schools and school districts help connect children and families with local organizations, youth programs, and health plans. All webinar recordings and best practices resources will be made available at
ca-path.com/collaborative under the “Best Practices and Resources" section. For questions, please email
collaborative@ca-path.com.
Stakeholder Advisory Committee (SAC)/Behavioral Health (BH)-SAC Meeting
On October 29, from 9:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. PDT, DHCS will host the hybrid
SAC/BH-SAC meeting (advance registration required for online and in-person participation) at 1700 K Street (first-floor conference room 17.1014), Sacramento. SAC provides DHCS with valuable input and feedback on efforts to provide equitable access to quality health care. BH-SAC provides DHCS with input on behavioral health initiatives and was created as part of the ongoing effort to integrate behavioral health with the greater health care system. The agenda and other meeting materials will be
posted as the meeting date approaches. For more information, please email
SACinquiries@dhcs.ca.gov or
BehavioralHealthSAC@dhcs.ca.gov.
In Case You Missed It
Latest ECM and Community Supports Quarterly Report Available
On October 10, DHCS
released the latest ECM and Community Supports
quarterly report, covering data from January 2022 through March 2025. These services help Medi-Cal members stay healthier and avoid more costly health care services, such as emergency department visits and hospital stays.
Medi-Medi Plans Available During Medicare Open Enrollment
During
Medicare open enrollment, October 15 through December 7, eligible Californians can enroll in
Medi-Medi Plans, a type of Medicare Advantage plan that combines Medicare and Medi-Cal benefits into one coordinated plan. In 2026, these plans will be available in 41 counties, up from 12 counties in 2025. Medi-Medi Plans currently serve approximately 330,000 members. Starting in 2026, nine new Medi-Medi Plans will launch, and three existing Medi-Medi Plans will expand, to serve 461,000 potential members in 29 additional counties. For more information, visit the
DHCS Medi-Medi Plan webpage.
Proposed Amendment to Medi-Cal Home and Community-Based Services (HCBS) 1915(c) Waiver for Californians with Developmental Disabilities
DHCS is seeking input from members, providers, and other interested stakeholders on the proposed amendment to the Medi-Cal HCBS 1915(c) Waiver for Californians with Developmental Disabilities (
HCBS-DD waiver). DHCS plans to submit the proposed waiver amendment to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) by November 28, for a proposed effective date of March 1, 2026. Copies of the proposed amendment can be obtained, and comments may be submitted, by emailing
Federal.Programs@dds.ca.gov. Please include “HCBS Waiver" in the subject line or message. To ensure consideration, comments must be received by November 12. While comments submitted after this date will still be accepted, DHCS may not be able to review them before submitting the HCBS-DD waiver amendment to CMS.
Transitional Rent Payment Methodology
On October 3, DHCS released the final
Transitional Rent Payment Methodology. This document includes the maximum reimbursable amount (“reimbursable ceilings") and administrative fees associated with Transitional Rent—the newest Community Supports service designed to provide up to six months of rental assistance for Medi-Cal members who are experiencing or at risk of homelessness and meet additional eligibility criteria. As outlined in the
Community Supports Policy Guide Volume 2, Medi-Cal managed care plans must cover Transitional Rent for the behavioral health population as the first mandatory Community Supports service beginning on January 1, 2026. To provide more information about the Transitional Rent Payment Methodology, DHCS will host a
webinar on October 31, from 10 to 11 a.m. DHCS also encourages partners and stakeholders to visit the
ECM and Community Supports webpage for more information and the new
DHCS Housing for Health webpage for updates on various DHCS-led housing-focused initiatives.
