HomeMy WebLinkAboutMINUTES - 05242005 - U1 .. W
,r
TO: BOARD OF SUPERVISORS
Contra
FROM: William B. Walker M.D. Director Costa
Contra Costa Health Services County
DATE: May 24, 2005
SUBJECT: Opposition to the Federal Medi-Cal (Medicaid) Waiver Under Consideration and
Support of the State of California's Efforts toward an Agreement that Protects the
Safety Net Hospitals' Funding
SPECIFIC REQUEST(S)OR RECOMMENDATIONS)&BACKGROUND AND JUSTIFICATION
Recommendation:
OPPOSE a Medicaid (Medi-Cal) waiver that does not guarantee that public safety net hospitals
would be held harmless from a reduction in funding; and
OPPOSE a 5-year Medi-Cal waiver that does not provide for funding growth; and
ACKNOWLEDGE that the County cannot support a waiver that has not been fully evaluated and
that poses a significant risk to County services, including potential cuts in public hospital services;
and
SUPPORT the State of California in its efforts to accomplish an agreement with the federal
government that will stabilize the safety net hospitals and increase federal funding to California's
public safety net hospitals; and
SUPPORT the State's request for full federal funding of a comprehensive hospital financing waiver,
valued at nearly $700 million additional federal funds in the initial year.
Background:
There is a health care crisis in California, with 6.5 million uninsured people in need of health care.
Public hospitals make up just 5 percent of all California hospitals yet provide more than 50 percent
of the hospital care to the uninsured. Contra Costa Regional Medical Center is one of those
hospitals.
Public hospitals rely on Medi-Cal (Medicaid) as their primary payer source. For the last six months,
the State of California has been negotiating with the federal government for a five-year Medicaid
waiver to restructure safety net hospital financing. The current hospital financing waiver expires on
June 30, 2005.
CONTINUED ON ATTACHMENT x Yes No SIGNATURE:
L/1ECOMMENDATION OF COUNTY ADMINISTRATOR RECOMMENDATION OF BOARD COMMITTEE
PROVE OTHER
SIGNATURES •
ACTION OF BO R ON
� G APPROVED AS RECOMMENDED 94bTHER
VOTE OF SUP ISORS c
o4--UNANIMiUS(ASSENT '' I HEREBY CERTIFY THAT THIS IS A TRUE AND
AYES: NOES: CORRECT COPY OF AN ACTION TAKEN AND
ABSENT: ABSTAIN: ENTERED ON THE MINUTES OF THE BOARD OF
SUPERVISORS ON THE DATE SHOWN.
ATTESTED
Contact Person: Patrick Godley, CCHS Admin.370-5005 JOHNS STEN, RK OF THE BOARD OF
SUPERVISORS AND COUNTY ADMINISTRATOR
cc: Health Services Department Admin. `
Patrick Godley, CCHS Admin. BY: � -
DEPUTY
opposition to the Federal Medi-Cal (Medicaid)Waiver Under Consideration and
Support of the State of California's Efforts toward an Agreement that Protects the
Safety Net Hospitals' Funding
May 23, 2005
Page 2
Public Hospitals need a financing waiver which will stabilize the safety net, hold harmless each public
safety net hospital from a loss in existing funding, and create growth in funding to allow these
hospitals to meet the demand for care by the uninsured, indigent, Medi-Cal and other patients; a
waiver that will not freeze funding for public and private safety net hospitals; a waiver that will include
mechanisms to draw down the full value of available federal funding.
The current version of the waiver under negotiation does not meet the criteria described
above.
The contents of the waiver have changed in the last week and counties have not been able to
determine the full impact on their public hospitals, posing great risk to those hospitals.
A waiver that does not stabilize the safety net and guarantee growth for public and private safety net
hospitals will make California's health care crisis worse by disabling the institutions that operate on its
front lines.
Fiscal Impact:
Contra Costa Regional Medical Center receives in excess of$45,000,000 for inpatient Medi-Cal
services. The proposed change could jeopardize the existing funding and eliminate growth potential
in the future.
-2-