​1915(b) Medi-Cal Specialty Mental Health Services Waiver

California’s 1915(b) SMHS Waiver renewal was approved for a five-year term, July 1, 2015 through June 30, 2020, and includes Special Terms and Conditions (STCs). The STCs are included in the CMS' approval letter below and are geared toward improving program integrity, monitoring and compliance. Among other requirements, the STCs specifically require the publication of MHP performance data (dashboards), Plans of Correction, and Quality Improvement Plans on the DHCS website.

 

California Advancing and Innovating Medi-Cal (CalAIM) is a multi-year Department of Health Care Services (DHCS) initiative to implement overarching policy changes across all Medi-Cal delivery systems. Throughout 2019 and 2020, DHCS will conduct extensive stakeholder engagement for both CalAIM and the Medicaid Section 1115 waiver renewal. The goal is to transition all existing managed care authorities into one consolidated 1915(b) California managed care waiver. For more information about the CalAIM initiatives and stakeholder engagement process, please visit the CalAIM webpage.