The HASD&IC Biweekly Briefing provides timely news and information for HASD&IC members and associates and is published on the first and third Wednesdays of the month. Key articles and issues of interest from each publication, along with the President’s Message, are included below.
Newsroom
5 Things To Know: Public Comment Requested on Mental Health Services Act Annual Update
From April 1 through May 1, San Diego County is holding a 30-day online public review and comment period for the Mental Health Services Act (MHSA) Fiscal Year 2025-26 Annual Update. Final comments will be heard at the Behavioral Health Advisory Board’s May 1 meeting. The annual update will go before the San Diego County Board of Supervisors on June 3, subject to change, for review and approval, as required by the Mental Health Services Oversight & Accountability Commission, also known as MHSOAC. This will be the final MHSA Annual Report completed before San Diego County Behavioral Health Services shifts to the new Behavioral Health Services Act (BHSA) Integrated Plan. Planning is underway to assess the impact and implement the BHSA’s various new requirements.
Upcoming Webinar Explains HQI Solution to Hospital Equity Reporting Challenges
The Hospital Quality Institute (HQI) is offering a service that provides 95% of the information hospitals are required to report by Sept. 30 under Assembly Bill 1204. HQI is hosting a webinar on April 10 addressing the challenges hospitals encounter in equity reporting and how its Hospital Quality Improvement Platform (HQIP) can simplify this process.
Tackling San Diego’s Behavioral Health Crisis
As Southern California residents continue to face increased financial pressures, the demand for behavioral health services has grown significantly. With hospitals also under financial duress, it is becoming more challenging to meet the needs of those who struggle with mental health and substance use disorders. But with hospitals also under financial duress — 53% of all hospitals statewide lose money every day to deliver patient care — it is becoming more challenging to meet the needs of those who struggle with mental health and substance use disorders. At HASD&IC, we understand that behavioral health has a lasting impact on the entire health care system, evidenced by behavioral health being elevated to a top HASD&IC board priority by both the community and our hospitals.
5 Things To Know: Register by Thursday for Upcoming Imperial CalAIM PATH Collaborative Meeting
On March 27 from noon to 3 p.m. (PT), community organizations, county agencies, health care providers, and managed care plans serving Imperial County are invited to an in-person meeting and lunch at the Community Health Plan of Imperial office, hosted by the California Advancing and Innovating Medi-Cal (CalAIM) Providing Access and Transforming Health (PATH) Collaborative. The CalAIM PATH Collaborative’s purpose is to build awareness of local enhanced care management and community support services, identify and address gaps, share best practices, explore funding and collaborative opportunities, and use collective resources to make a difference in the community. Attendees must register by March 20.
5 Things To Know: Street Medicine Summit Offers Hands-On Training and CME
On April 4 from 8:30 a.m. to noon (PT), Live Well San Diego is hosting the quarterly Street Medicine Summit at the county operations center. The summit includes two back-to-back sessions: The first is hands-on wound debridement training and the second is a care coordination solutioning workshop. Participants are eligible to receive continuing medical education (CME) credit for their participation. Event registration closes March 25.
5 Things To Know: Upcoming Generational Poverty Workshop Brings Fresh Perspectives
On April 3 from 10 a.m. to noon (PT), the Alliance for Regional Solutions is hosting a virtual interactive workshop aimed at bringing a fresh perspective to the long-standing dialogue surrounding generational wealth and poverty in America. The community is invited to register for this free event, where they will use role-playing and discussion to examine the establishment of slavery, the policies that perpetuated racism and inequality, and the social climate that fostered both generational wealth and poverty. MS Dispatch Enhanced Care Access (and its related template is included for comment).
5 Things To Know: San Diego County EMS Seeks Input on Key Policies
The San Diego County Emergency Medical Services (EMS) Office is in the process of revising several policies that support the organized EMS delivery system, and has released updated drafts for additional public comment through April 14. These drafts are based on initial community feedback from the comment period that ended Dec. 31, 2024. Changes include clarifying language, among other edits, on the following policies: Special Program Authorizations, EMS Continuing Education, Data Use and Standards, EMS Dispatch Enhanced Care Access (and its related template is included for comment).
5 Things To Know: San Diego County Requests Community Feedback on Budget Priorities by March 28
San Diego County government is responsible for day-to-day management — including law enforcement, roads, building permits, animal shelters, protection, parks, and libraries — in the region’s large unincorporated area (outside of the 18 cities and 18 federally recognized tribes). Some cities also contract with the county to provide services. To aid in its budget priorities for 2025-27, the county wants to hear which of its services and programs matter most to its residents and requests this community feedback by March 28.
New HQI Program Supports Mandatory Health Equity Reporting
The Hospital Quality Institute (HQI) has, as part of its Hospital Quality Improvement Platform (HQIP), released a new reporting service that includes 95% of the information hospitals are required to report by Sept. 30 under Assembly Bill 1204.
5 Things To Know: CDPH Issues All Facilities Letter on Psychiatric Emergency Medical Conditions
On Feb. 24, the California Department of Public Health (CDPH) released an All Facilities Letter (AFL) notifying general acute care hospitals and acute psychiatric hospitals that Assembly Bill 1316 — which amends the definition of a psychiatric emergency medical condition and related patient transfer laws — has been chaptered. The AFL clarifies that the amended definition and laws apply regardless of whether a patient is voluntarily or involuntarily detained for assessment, evaluation, and crisis intervention; or placed for evaluation under the Lanterman-Petris-Short Act. Contact the CDPH’s San Diego District Office with questions about this AFL.
