San Francisco Health Plan (SFHP), a community managed care health
plan serving over 140,000 San Francisco residents,
announced today that it has launched a new benefit “Health Homes
for Patients with Complex Needs”. San Francisco
County is the first county in California to launch
this innovative new Health Homes benefit allowing for fully
coordinated care for eligible Medi-Cal members with chronic
conditions.
1: What is relatively unique about Medi-Cal managed care compared
to Medicaid programs elsewhere in the country?
Brianna Lierman: California is the nation’s
most populous state and has the nation’s highest poverty rate
when considering the high cost of living, so it follows that we
also have the largest Medicaid program (“Medi-Cal”) with nearly
14 million Californians enrolled. Over 80% are enrolled in the
state’s organized managed care delivery system while the rest are
in traditional fee-for-service, which is on par with other
states.
Presented by SurfMedia Communications, a Santa Barbara-based PR
and marketing firm, some 60 nonprofit leaders from across the
tri-counties joined forces at the Narrative Loft in Santa Barbara
June 27 for an opportunity to reflect on recent challenges and
plan for the future of their organizations.
International speaker, trainer and author Tai Sunnanon led the
discussion at the event. Sunnanon commented on the abundance of
leadership expertise in the room, and commended nonprofit leaders
in the region for their resiliency and adaptability in the wake
of recent disasters.
Meals That Connect hosted their 11th annual “Night of a Million Meals” event recently to raise money to feed San Luis Obispo County seniors. Thanks to a $100,000 matching funds offer from CenCal Health, the event raised close to $250,000.
Veteran nonprofit health care manager Amy Shin was looking for a
leadership position in 2013, and Health Plan of San Joaquin
(HPSJ) seemed to offer the right fit. After years of working in
senior roles at respected Bay Area managed care organizations,
here was a CEO job not too far from her Oakland home.
Community Action Commission (CAC) recently honored those who’ve
helped improve the lives of children, youth, families and seniors
in Santa Barbara County. The 13th annual Champions event, held at
Hotel Corque in Solvang, recognized:
Fran Forman – As the recently retired executive
director of Community Action Commission, Forman has worked on
behalf of children, teens, families and seniors to promote their
education, job skills, physical/emotional well-being, and
economic security in an effort to stabilize their lives.
CenCal Health, the healthcare provider for nearly 180,000
Central Coast residents, marked its 10th anniversary
operating in San Luis Obispo County with an evening of
celebration and community recognition on March 28.
FRENCH CAMP—It’s been five years since Amy Shin became the CEO of
Health Plan of San Joaquin, a not-for-profit health plan that
helps low-income residents secure high-quality health care. In
that time, Shin has worked tirelessly with HPSJ staff to increase
membership, provide health education to the public and even
combat illiteracy. Though there is a long way to go, Shin
believes the organization is moving in the right direction.
Gun violence in this country is an epidemic, and it needs to be
treated like every other epidemic, as a public health crisis. The
first step to finding a “cure” for any public health crisis is
research. The new spending bill signed into law on March 23
included one sentence saying the Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention (CDC) has the authority to research gun violence. But
with no funding attached, it’s meaningless.
It is the honor of my life to be able to say – In May, I
celebrate my 5th anniversary at HPSJ!
I have had the privilege to be part of and help lead amazing,
innovating organizations during my career. But none has
so completely woven together, as Health Plan of San
Joaquin, my personal passions, organizational mission, and
the overwhelming sense of community commitment.
The health-care battlefield is burning brighter than ever. Eight
years after the passage of the Affordable Care Act (ACA),
conservatives think that the ACA is an overreach of government
authority and should be repealed. Progressives, on the other
hand, believe that the ACA should be replaced by a single-payer
system operated with public funds, guaranteeing universal
coverage for all citizens.
More than 70 attempts to repeal the Affordable Care Act failed,
but the groundbreaking legislation is still facing death by a
thousand cuts, and it’s clear we cannot depend on Washington to
fix what ails the health care system. The health care industry
must step up and develop reforms that will ensure the most
vulnerable continue to have access to quality care.
OAKLAND, CA – Alameda Alliance for Health
(Alliance) made a $102,000 contribution to the Alameda County
Public Health Department’s Shoo the Flu program, which will allow
them to continue to offer free flu vaccinations at local schools.
The Shoo the Flu program reduces influenza in the community by
providing free flu vaccinations, regardless of insurance to
students and teachers, at elementary schools throughout the
Oakland area.
Sixty-six percent of all Medi-Cal patients in Santa Barbara and
San Luis Obispo counties get appointments for urgent calls within
48 hours, according to the California Department of Managed
Health Care, and 83 percent of Medi-Cal patients seeking
non-urgent treatment get seen within two weeks.
These patients — totaling about 180,000 — are part of a managed
care system known as CenCal Health. These response times earned
CenCal a fourth-place ranking of 36 full-service health plans.
CenCal provides coverage to 20 percent of the two
counties’ population.
GREENFIELD — Mee Memorial Hospital has received a $2.5
million grant from the Central California Alliance for
Health that will go toward the expansion of the
hospital’s outpatient clinic in Greenfield.
“We are honored to have been awarded this grant from Central
California Alliance for Health,” said Susan Childers, CEO of Mee
Memorial Hospital, in a news release. “With the new grant, Mee
Memorial will be better able to support local efforts to
coordinate care and provide better outcomes for patients
throughout our community.”
(French Camp, CA) – San Joaquin County Director of Health Care
Services Greg Diederich – chair of the San Joaquin Health
Commission – has announced that the San Joaquin County Board of
Supervisors has formally appointed a new member of the Health
Commission, the governing board of Health Plan of San Joaquin
(HPSJ). He is San Joaquin County Board of Supervisors
member Chuck Winn, representing District 4.
Scotts Valley, Calif., Feb. 21, 2018 — Central California
Alliance for Health (the Alliance), an
award winning, regional non-profit Medi-Cal managed health care
plan serving Santa Cruz, Monterey and Merced counties, today
announced that Alan McKay,
founder and Chief Executive Officer (CEO), is retiring on Feb.
28, 2018, after 22 years of service.
ORANGE, Calif. (February 8, 2018) — Dedicated to
serving frail seniors, CalOptima’s Program of All-Inclusive Care
for the Elderly (PACE) is expanding through new partnerships with
selected Community-Based Adult Services (CBAS) centers. With
access to these centers, more seniors may join PACE and existing
PACE participants will gain more options to receive adult day
health care that suits their culture, location or medical
condition.
ORANGE, Calif. (February 2, 2018) — CalOptima’s Member Health
Needs Assessment (MHNA) is the agency’s most comprehensive study
to date quantifying for the first time significant health care
and social challenges. The MHNA provides data critical to
ensuring that health care providers and the community can
continue to address issues faced by CalOptima members.
In a time when the future of healthcare coverage may seem
uncertain, what is certain is that our community can be proud of
the quality of healthcare experienced by CenCal Health’s nearly
180,000 members.
