ORANGE, Calif. (March 21, 2022) — The CalOptima
Board of Directors unanimously approved a new vision for Medi-Cal
member services that will change the delivery of health care for
nearly 880,000 Orange County residents. The five-year strategic
vision aims to remove barriers to health care access for members
by implementing same-day treatment authorizations and real-time
claims payments for providers, and annually assessing members’
social determinants of health.
Scotts Valley, Calif., March 21, 2022 –Three
leaders of Central California Alliance for Health (the Alliance)
have been selected to participate in a year-long executive
leadership program designed to address racial and ethnic
disparities in health care. This includes Michelle Nepomuceno
Stott, MSN, RN, Quality Improvement & Population Health Director;
Dianna Diallo, MD, Medical Director; and Deborah Pineda, MPH,
Quality and Health Programs Manager.
SANTA BARBARA, Calif. – March 17, 2022 –
Referencing its decades-long history in healthcare on the Central
Coast, CenCal Health published its annual community report this
week. Titled “Building on a Legacy:
Evolution·Progression·Transition,” the multi-media account of the
health plan’s current position in the community is readily
available in English and Spanish at cencal2021.org.
ORANGE, Calif. (March 8, 2022) — Considering
increasing food prices and the continued impact of the pandemic,
CalOptima has identified that more than 340,000 members may be
eligible to access nutritious foods by enrolling in CalFresh,
which provides monthly food benefits for eligible low-income
people. In a unique collaboration to increase CalFresh
membership, CalOptima is working with the County of Orange Social
Services Agency (SSA) to streamline the enrollment process
through an improved phone line transfer between the agencies.
ORANGE, Calif. (March 4, 2022) — The CalOptima
Board of Directors has appointed interim CEO Michael Hunn as
permanent CEO of the public agency, effective March 3. Hunn had
been serving as interim CEO since November 2021 following the
retirement of Richard Sanchez, who had served as an interim and
then permanent CEO of CalOptima since April 2020.
South San Francisco, CA (February 10,
2022) – The San Mateo Health Commission
has announced that Patrick
Curran will serve as Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the
Health Plan of San Mateo (HPSM). Curran will be succeeding Maya
Altman, who led HPSM as CEO from 2005 until her retirement at the
end of 2021.
SAN FRANCISCO, February 8 , 2022 – The Governing
Board of the San Francisco Health Plan (SFHP) has announced
that Yolanda Richardson, currently the Secretary of the
California Government Operations Agency, will succeed John
F. Grgurina, Jr., as Chief Executive Officer,
effective April 4, 2022.
SACRAMENTO, CA — On behalf of the Local Health
Plans of California (LHPC), a group representing 16 of the
not-for-profit local health plans that serve more than 70 percent
of Californians enrolled in Medi-Cal managed care, CEO Linnea
Koopmans offered comment on Kaiser Permanente being awarded a
no-bid statewide Medi-Cal contract:
SACRAMENTO, CA — On behalf of the Local Health
Plans of California (LHPC), a group representing 16 of the
not-for-profit local health plans that serve more than 70 percent
of Californians enrolled in Medi-Cal managed care, CEO Linnea
Koopmans offered comment on Governor Gavin Newsom’s budget
proposal for 2022-23:
Sacramento, CA – On behalf of the Local Health
Plans of California (LHPC), a group representing 16 of the
not-for-profit local health plans that serve more than 70 percent
of Californians enrolled in Medi-Cal managed care, CEO Linnea
Koopmans offered comment on today’s
announcement that the California Department of Health Care
Services (DHCS) has received federal approval of its California
Advancing and Innovating Medi-Cal (CalAIM) proposal:
CAMARILLO, Calif., Dec. 20, 2021 – Gold
Coast Health Plan (GCHP) announced today that its governing board
has appointed Nick Liguori as chief executive officer of the
Ventura County Medi-Cal plan effective Feb. 1.
At its monthly meeting on Dec. 16, the Ventura County Medi-Cal
Managed Care Commission (VCMMCC) approved a three-year contract
with Mr. Liguori. The contract runs through Jan. 31, 2025.
SANTA BARBARA, Calif. – Early in the
pandemic, CenCal
Health, the Medi-Cal health plan with over 200,000 members on
California’s central coast, launched an innovative program for
San Luis Obispo County named Healthy Mothers Healthy
Families. The purpose of the program is to increase the rate
of timely postpartum appointments for CenCal Health members who
have recently delivered babies in SLO County.
SANTA BARBARA, Calif. – Oct 5, 2021 – CenCal
Health, the publicly-funded health care program for
Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo counties, announced today that
Marina Owen will serve as its CEO, effective
November 1. Owen succeeds Bob Freeman who is
retiring after 28 years with CenCal Health.
ORANGE, Calif. (September 20, 2021) — For the first time since
the pandemic began, the National Committee for Quality Assurance
(NCQA) released its national health plan ratings, naming
CalOptima one of the top Medi-Cal health plans in California.
This is the seventh year in a row that CalOptima has earned
recognition for leadership in quality.
SACRAMENTO, CA – As Medi-Cal transforms
through CalAIM and other new Medi-Cal programs and
benefits, Local Health Plans of California (LHPC) is expanding to
provide additional expertise and advocacy for local health
plans. The association is adding two new
Directors to their team. Trong Le is the new Director
of Government Affairs and Jennifer Lopez is filling a new
position for the association as the Director of Health Plan
Financing.
SANTA BARBARA, Calif. – July 26, 2021 – CenCal
Health, the publicly-sponsored health plan for
Medi-Cal in Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo counties, has
received top marks among the nation’s Medicaid plans for
adolescent immunizations and for adolescent weight
assessment according to the 2021 results from Healthcare Effectiveness Data and
Information Set (HEDIS®).
French Camp, California (June 17, 2021) – Health Plan of San Joaquin (HPSJ) this year marks its 25th anniversary while looking back in their newly released Community Report on another successful year of collaborating throughout the community to improve health.
ORANGE, Calif. (May 21, 2021) — To boost access
to COVID-19 vaccines for low-income, hard-to-reach members,
CalOptima partnered with the County of Orange to host the first
of four vaccine events this past Saturday at the CalOptima office
in Orange. Response was strong, and 820 people received a
vaccine. Additional events are scheduled for May 22, June 5 and
June 12. Uniquely targeting the needs of CalOptima members, the
event also included a Resource Fair offering other community
services and health screenings.
SACRAMENTO, CA – Today, the Board of the Local
Health Plans of California (LHPC) announced Linnea Koopmans as
the association’s new Chief Executive Officer. Since stepping in
as interim CEO last February, Koopmans has led LHPC in its
ongoing support of its local member plans as they serve
California’s most vulnerable populations in the state’s Medi-Cal
managed care program.
