Health and Human Services Publications
To browse all LAO publications, visit our Publications page.
Major Issues Facing the Unemployment Insurance Program
- Format:
March 4, 2015 - Presented to Senate Labor and Industrial Relations Committee
Access to Care in Medi-Cal: Focusing Oversight on Managed Care
- Format:
March 4, 2015 - Presented to Assembly Committee on Health and Senate Committee on Health
Options for a State Earned Income Tax Credit
- Format:
February 25, 2015 - Presented to Assembly Budget Subcommittee No. 1 on Health and Human Services
The 2015-16 Budget: Analysis of the Health Budget
February 12, 2015 - This report analyzes the Governor's 2015-16 state health program budget proposals. In the report, we review trends in the major health programs since 2007-08 (the last budget developed before the most recent recession), analyze the Governor's proposed restructuring of the managed care organization (MCO) tax, and describe the uncertainty regarding continued federal funding for the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP). The report also includes an analysis of the Department of State Hospitals budget and an analysis of the Governor's proposals to improve quality and increase staffing for the Licensing and Certification (L&C) Program administered by the Department of Public Health.
The Universal Assessment Tool: Improving Care for Recipients of Home- and Community-Based Services
January 22, 2015 - In 2012, the Legislature authorized the development and pilot implementation of a universal assessment tool (UAT) to streamline eligibility and level-of-need determinations for three home- and community-based services (HCBS) programs that provide care to seniors and people with disabilities. Our analysis finds that the benefits of a UAT likely outweigh the costs associated with its development. To ensure the UAT achieves the benefits of creating a more effective and efficient approach to HCBS assessment, we recommend: (1) legislation specifying intent to eventually use the UAT on a statewide basis, (2) development of an automated UAT customized to fit within California’s programmatic and policy environment, (3) piloting of county welfare departments and managed care plans as administrators of the UAT, and (4) a formal evaluation of the UAT pilot.
Integrating Health and Human Services Eligibility and Enrollment Processes
October 30, 2014 - The integration of eligibility and enrollment processes of health and human services (HHS) programs has long been an important issue for the state. In this report, we focus on the integration of three key HHS programs: the California Medical Assistance Program (Medi-Cal), CalFresh, and the California Work Opportunity and Responsibility to Kids (CalWORKs) program. We also raise several issues for legislative consideration, including (1) determining the appropriate balance between local control and standardized statewide processes, (2) considering whether automation systems currently under development could be leveraged to strengthen integration, and (3) considering whether additional programs should be integrated.
Proposition 46: Drug and Alcohol Testing of Doctors. Medical Negligence Lawsuits.
- Format:
September 29, 2014 - Presented to: Assembly Health Committee; Assembly Judiciary Committee; Assembly Business, Professions and Consumer Protection Committee; Senate Health Committee Senate Judiciary Committee; Senate Business, Professions and Economic Development Committee
Retention and Recruitments at State Hospitals (Agenda Page 21)
- Format:
June 2, 2014 - Presented to: Budget Conference Committee
Incompetent to Stand Trial Population (Agenda Page 20)
- Format:
June 2, 2014 - Presented to: Budget Conference Committee
Health and Human Services Overview
- Format:
June 2, 2014 - Presented to: Budget Conference Committee
Health in All Policies Task Force (Agenda Page 17)
- Format:
June 2, 2014 - Presented to: Budget Conference Committee
The 2014-15 Budget: Analysis of the Health Budget
February 20, 2014 - The report analyzes the Governor's 2014-15 health budget proposals. In it, we (1) provide an analysis of the impact the implementation of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA)--known as federal health care reform--is having on the Medi-Cal program; (2) analyze the Governor's budget proposal to exempt certain, but not all, classes of Medi-Cal providers and services from retroactive recoupments of payment reductions; and (3) assess the fiscal outlook for the California Health Benefit Exchange, also known as Covered California.
Rethinking PARIS Data Match: Connecting Veterans on Medi-Cal to Federal Benefits
August 6, 2013 - Since 2009, the state has used a computer data matching process known as the Public Assistance Reporting Information System (PARIS) to identify certain military veterans who receive Medi-Cal services and may be able to voluntarily shift to health care services provided by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (USDVA). We find that the fiscal and policy benefits from the state's current implementation of PARIS Veterans activities are limited, due to resource constraints and a problematic approach to outreach. We recommend that the Legislature provide additional resources to conduct a new pilot that tests a modified approach to PARIS Veterans outreach. We also find that the state has not pursued a major source of savings related to the PARIS Veterans match: counting a type of USDVA monetary benefit known as aid and attendance toward the costs of the In-Home Supportive Services program. We recommend that the Legislature require the administration to report on the rationale for current policies that prevent the state from realizing these savings.
Letter to Assembly Member Perea on the Potential Transfer of the Drinking Water Program (DWP)
- Format:
June 18, 2013 - Letter to the Honorable Henry T. Perea, Assembly Member, regarding the advantages and disadvantages of transferring the Drinking Water Program (DWP) from the Department of Public Health (DPH) to a newly created stand-alone entity under the California Environmental Protection Agency (Cal-EPA), as compared to transferring it to the State Water Resources Control Board (SWRCB).
The Safe Drinking Water State Revolving Fund and Drinking Water Program Governance
- Format:
May 15, 2013 - Presented to Senate Environmental Quality Committee
Health and Human Services Staff
- Mark Newton
- (916) 319-8323
- Deputy Legislative Analyst: Health, Developmental Services, and Technology
- Ryan Anderson
- (916) 319-8308
- CalWORKs/CalFresh/Developmental Services
- Jason Constantouros
- (916) 319-8322
- Medi-Cal/Hospital Finance/Managed Care/Health Care Affordability and Workforce Development
- Brian Metzker
- (916) 319-8354
- Privacy, Security, and Technology
- Ryan Miller
- (916) 319-8356
- Medi-Cal/Behavioral Health/CalHHS Agency Issues
- Angela Short
- (916) 319-8309
- Teachers' Retirement Policy/ Child Welfare/ Community Care Licensing
- Luke Koushmaro
- (916) 319-8355
- Medi-Cal/Long-Term Care/Family Health/Covered California
- Will Owens
- (916) 319-8341
- Public Health/Behavioral Health/State Hospitals
- Ginni Bella Navarre
- (916) 319-8342
- Deputy Legislative Analyst: Human Services and Governance