The 2022-23 Budget: Health Care Access and Affordability

Feb 23, 2022 - Cost ‑Sharing Reductions. While the APTC offsets premium costs, cost ‑sharing reductions are subsidies that reduce households ’ out ‑of ‑pocket costs such as co ‑pays, deductibles, and annual out ‑of ‑pocket maximums.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/4560

The 2026-27 Budget: Department of Developmental Services

Mar 13, 2026 - Costs Vary by Type of Service, With Delivery Models Evolving Over Time to Emphasize Individualized Supports. The Lanterman Act specifies that services overall should be provided in a cost ‑effective way.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/5157

The 2026-27 Budget: Medi-Cal Analysis

Mar 2, 2026 - The administration stated that increasing Medi ‑Cal costs were due to several factors, including increased utilization of high ‑cost anti ‑obesity drugs, increased enrollment of seniors and persons with disabilities following the elimination of the state ’s asset test, and the higher than anticipated costs associated with the state ’s expansion of full ‑scope Medi ‑Cal coverage to all individuals regardless of immigration status.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/5146

The 2026-27 Budget: Department of Developmental Services [Publication Details]

Mar 13, 2026 - Analyzes the Governor’s budget for the Department of Developmental Services (DDS), with a focus on a budget proposal to continue planning the proposed Life Outcomes Improvement System (LOIS) information technology project, implementation of new H.R.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Detail/5157

The 2026-27 Budget: Medi-Cal Fiscal Outlook

Nov 19, 2025 - These new costs come from financing policies that result in less provider tax revenue and federal cost sharing ($5.1  billion). Our outlook also estimates that eligibility changes in H.R. 1 will reduce Medi ‑Cal caseload by 1.6  million people by 2029 ‑30, partially offsetting costs ($1.9  billion).
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/5092

Considering Medi-Cal in the Midst of a Changing Fiscal and Policy Landscape

Oct 24, 2025 - We estimate there will be three key direct effects, on net potentially costing as much as several billion dollars in annual General Fund costs. Cost to Backfill Lower Provider Tax Revenue. By far the largest direct cost to the state General Fund would come from lower provider tax revenue as a result of H.R.  1.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/5083

The 2025-26 California Spending Plan: Health

Oct 16, 2025 - These rate increases reflect higher costs in the Medi-Cal program. Accordingly, the administration ’s Proposition  35 spending plan treats this cost growth as an augmentation in 2025 and 2026. Because the General Fund would have otherwise covered these costs, the spending plan also scores these amounts as budget solutions.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/5075

The 2025-26 Budget: Medi-Cal Pharmacy Spending

Apr 3, 2025 - For each prescription, there are two payments: (1)  the cost of the drug, generally based on the cost to the pharmacy of purchasing the drug; and (2)  a set rate to pharmacies (either $10 or $13, depending on the size of the pharmacy) for the cost of dispensing the drug.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/5026

The 2025-26 Budget: Health Care Access and Information

Feb 20, 2025 - Costs also are higher for consumers, with average out‑of‑pocket costs more than four times the cost for brand drugs than generics. A substantial share of spending on brand drugs was concentrated among a handful of relatively expensive drugs.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/4979

The 2025-26 Budget: Understanding Recent Increases in the Medi-Cal Senior Caseload

Mar 6, 2025 - Individuals who are enrolled in share ‑of ‑cost Medi ‑Cal, but who have not met their share of cost in a given month, are not reflected in the caseload data. By eliminating the share ‑of ‑cost requirement for these individuals, we estimate that this expansion brought around 30,000 new Medi ‑Cal members into the program in a single  month.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/5010