CHNA SURVEY: ICYMI in the Feb. 16 Biweekly, HASD&IC asked for your help in connecting with communities across San Diego County for the 2022 Community Health Needs Assessment (CHNA). Please consider promoting the survey through your organization’s communication venues, including newsletters, public distribution lists, social media, employee distribution lists, etc. To assist members with promotion, HASD&IC has created a social media toolkit with text and images. The CHNA survey is available in six languages — English, Arabic, Somali, Spanish, Tagalog, and Vietnamese.
MEDI-CAL LETTER OF SUPPORT: The county of San Diego has posted its letter of support template for Medi-Cal managed care plans (MCPs). Applicants that want to pursue the optional letter of support must commit to meeting the core values in the Framework for the Future:
- Meaningful Coordination, Collaboration and Transparency
- Enhanced Care Management Data Sharing
- Person Centered Care Coordination, which includes contracting with the County of San Diego to be the Enhanced Care Management provider for special populations including Seriously Mentally Ill/Substance Use Disorder/Serious Emotionally Disturbed populations and other complex patients for whom they serve as the clinical and/or social service experts
- Data Sharing/Information Technology and Infrastructure, which includes directly contracting with San Diego Health Connect for things such as payment of any associated participation fees
MCPs interested in obtaining a letter of support from the Board of Supervisors must notify the county by submitting a request no later than March 4. The county will return the letter of support by April 5. The request must include:
- A completed checklist documenting the letter of support requirements the MCP has met and commits to continuing to meet, signed by the plan CEO
- Any additional information the MCP wishes to include in support of its request
More details are available on the county of San Diego website.
PUBLIC HEALTH HOTEL PROGRAM: On Feb. 23, the county of San Diego announced it will end this program by March 31; new referrals for the isolation hotels ceased on March 1. All guests of high-risk hotels have received notice of the program’s transition. On-going assistance is being provided to ensure alternative housing/shelter options are identified by March 20.
HOMELESSNESS REPORT: The California Budget and Policy Center recently published a report called Who is Experiencing Homelessness in California? The report is designed to help people understand who is more likely to experience homelessness in California and guide state leaders in crafting tailored interventions that meet people where they are and focus policies on groups like single adults, Black Californians, and American Indian or Alaska Native and Pacific Islander Californians — who make up the majority of the homeless population in the state. San Diego County recently conducted its Point in Time Count — a federally mandated requirement designated by the Department of Housing and Urban Development; Imperial County held its count in late January.
MEDI-CAL RX: The Department of Health Care Services has removed the prior authorization requirements after people were having difficulty getting their usual medications, even though a transition plan was put in place to avoid this hurdle. Medi-Cal Rx is temporarily adjusting some prior authorization requirements to optimize access to patient care and therapies during this period of transition.
