We sent a letter to William Lightbourne, the Director of the California Department of Health Care Services in support of the goals of the California Department of Health Care Services’ (DHCS) California Advancing and Innovating Medi-Cal (CalAIM) and to provide comments on specific components for Medi-Cal mental health services.
We strongly support the CalAIM proposal to pursue participating in the federal Institutions for Mental Disease (IMD) Serious Mental Illness (SMI)/Serious Emotional Disturbance (SED) demonstration program. \We regularly hear from distressed family members desperate to find available mental health treatment in their communities. Without adequate federal and state investments over many years, our mental health treatment capacity for crisis levels of care has failed to meet individuals’ needs.
We also support proposed changes to: Behavioral Health Medical Necessity Criteria; Standardized Screening and Transition Tools; Service Linkage Prior to Release from County Jail; Payment that Prioritizing Outcomes and Quality.