An Update on the Public Health Laboratory System After the Pandemic

Jun 12, 2025 - COVID-19 Pandemic Highlighted Testing Gaps Public Health Laboratories Faced Challenges Prior to COVID-19 Pandemic Overall State and Federal Funding for Public Health Remained Flat for Decade Prior to COVID-19.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/5056

The 2024-25 Budget: Future of Public Health Budget Solution

May 21, 2024 - COVID-19 Highlighted Disparities in Public Health Outcomes and Solution May Worsen Trend. The Future of Public Health funding also included specific funding for CDPH and LHJs to address disparities in health outcomes.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/4904

The 2021-22 Budget: CalAIM: Equity Considerations

Mar 12, 2021 - The Whole Person Care and Health Homes interim evaluations primarily analyze the impacts of the pilot programs from a total statewide perspective, while also highlighting differences in approach among the different participating program administrators.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/4402

The 2025-26 Budget: Medi-Cal Fiscal Outlook

Nov 20, 2024 - Below, we highlight three key issue areas in our Medi-Cal outlook as the Legislature prepares for, and considers, the upcoming Governor ’s budget. MCO Tax Federal Approval of Recent MCO Tax Increases Is Pending.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/4941

The 2022-23 Budget: Analysis of the Medi-Cal Budget

Feb 9, 2022 - The administration projects a substantial decline in Proposition  56 revenues between 2021 ‑22 and 2022 ‑23, primarily as a result of the anticipated implementation of a statewide ban on the sale of flavored tobacco products.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/4522

Mental Health Services Act: LAO Update: The Governor's Revised Behavioral Health Modernization Proposal

Aug 21, 2023 - This post highlights three key issue areas from our prior analyses that are significantly impacted by the August 15th amendments: (1) county spending flexibility, (2) funding for children and youth services, and (3) the role of the Mental Health Services Oversight and Accountability Commission (MHSOAC).
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/4792

The 2021-22 Budget: Assessment of CalHEERS Dashboard

Mar 25, 2021 - CWDA and SEIU also highlighted needed functionalities that were first identified when the state began implementation of CalHEERS in 2013 b ut have not yet been added, such as the ability for county staff to correct eligibility transactions between CalHEERS and  SAWS.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/4408

The 2025-26 Budget: CalAIM Enhanced Care Management and Community Supports Implementation Update

Mar 6, 2025 - Geographic differences can highlight regional differences in capacity or infrastructure, while differences across MCPs can also indicate differences in program implementation. As shown in Figure  9 , most MCPs have less than a 1  percent utilization rate for both ECM and Community Supports.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/5003

The 2024-25 Budget: Medi-Cal Fiscal Outlook

Dec 7, 2023 - This post provides our annual fiscal outlook for General Fund spending in Medi-Cal. It summarizes our projections, describes the major factors driving our projections, and highlights key uncertainties.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/4820

The 2023-24 Budget: Department of Developmental Services

Feb 15, 2023 - Below, we highlight  six  areas of particular interest for the Legislature: (1)  implementing service provider rate reform, (2)  addressing racial/ethnic and other disparities in the per ‑person amounts spent on services, (3)  complying with the federal HCBS final rule, (4)  complying with required service coordinator caseload ratios, (5)  encouraging employment opportunities for DDS consumers, and (6)  rolling out SDP.
https://lao.ca.gov/Publications/Report/4683