Reject Freeze for County Administration of Health and Human Services Programs [Publication Details]

Feb 23, 2006 - The Governor proposes to freeze future state participation in county administrative costs for health and social services programs at the 2005-06 level, adjusted for caseload, but not inflation. We recommend rejecting the Governor’s proposal because it would restrict legislative flexibility to adjust funding and services levels.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Detail/1434

Health Care in Rural California [Publication Details]

Feb 21, 1990 - In this report, we examine health care services in rural areas within the state.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Detail/502

Reforming California's Mental Health System [Publication Details]

Mar 26, 1991 - California's mental health system is a partnership involving shared responsibilities between the state and counties. The system is governed by the Short-Doyle Act, enacted in 1957. The act requires the Department of Mental Health to provide leadership in administering, planning, financing, and overseeing mental health services, including local programs.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Detail/499

Future Federal Funding Shortfall for Healthy Families [Publication Details]

Feb 23, 2006 - Future uncertainty about reauthorization of federal funding and the eventual exhaustion of unspent federal funds pose a risk of significant future increases in state costs for the Healthy Families Program (HFP). We present alternatives to hold down increases in overall HFP costs and to obtain additional financial support for the program.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Detail/1418

Governor’s Health Family Reforms: An Assessment [Publication Details]

Feb 18, 2004 - The Governor's budget proposal to cap Healthy Families Program enrollment, while feasible and effective in addressing the state's fiscal problems, raises a number of issues. We recommend against this approach because other alternatives are available to the Legislature to hold down the cost of the Healthy Families Program.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Detail/1121

Substance Abuse Treatment in California: Services Are Cost-Effective to Society [Publication Details]

Jul 13, 1999 - We identify several problems in the state's substance abuse treatment system. These include lengthy waiting lists in a number of counties, no statewide plan for addressing the demand for treatment services, and a need in particular for treatment services aimed at adolescents.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Detail/298

Pay-for-Performance Could Reduce Medi-Cal Costs and Improve Patient Care [Publication Details]

Feb 20, 2008 - As health care costs continue to face upward cost pressures, many federal, state and private health care programs have turned to pay-for-performance programs as a way of both ensuring the practice of effective and efficient medicine and of controlling costs.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Detail/1764

Review of the Department of Managed Health Care (DMHC) [Publication Details]

Dec 5, 2001 - A member requested comprehensive review of the Department of Managed Health Care’s (DMHC) $30 million budget and its daily operations. We offer a series of options for further reform of the managed care industry, including licensing and certification of medical groups and expanded state review of HMO contracts for medical services
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Detail/816

Fiscal and Policy Options for the Every Woman Counts Program [Publication Details]

Jun 14, 2010 - Recently, there has been significant legislative and public interest in the state’s Every Woman Counts (EWC) program for breast cancer early detection. We provide background on the EWC program and other state breast cancer programs and describe the recent history of the program, including caseload and funding trends and recent program changes.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Detail/2305

Regional Center Mission and Funding are Misaligned [Publication Details]

Feb 20, 2002 - Funding for Regional Centers for the developmentally disabled has more than doubled since 1995-96, yet they are still experiencing financial problems. We propose some initial steps the Legislature could take to achieve significant savings that could either be used to reduce state spending or to reinvest in the Regional Center system.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Detail/864