California Family Health Council, Inc.

The budget cuts affect everything from public schools to prisons to state parks. Health care is no exception; the Governor’s Budget slashes millions of dollars in funding for the Department of Health Care Services. In total, health care cuts represent $47.6 million, and are largely the result of the elimination of adult dental benefits and a proposed 10 percent reduction in Medi-Cal reimbursements.

How does the proposed budget affect our Title X clinics?

The budget cuts will:

• Reduce payments by 10 percent for family planning services paid by Medi-Cal. The only exception is for reimbursements through the Family PACT program. The increased reimbursement rates for Family PACT providers that went into effect on January 1, 2008, will remain in place.
• Reduce funding for the Teen Pregnancy and Prevention Program. The Teen Pregnancy Programs, including Male Involvement, Information & Education, and Teen Smart, will all incur a 10 percent reduction.
• Cause thousands of adults – many of them women – to lose Medi-Cal coverage. The Governor proposes to institute quarterly redetermination of eligibility for both children and adults. It is estimated that this increase in paperwork requirements will result in $92.2 million of lost coverage.
• Eliminate certain Medi-Cal optional benefits, including adult dental, audiology, optometry, podiatry, psychology and speech therapy.
• Increase clinic licensing and certification fees from $871 to $1350.

An additional financial hardship for clinics is check-write delays, which have been confirmed. The June payment to Medi-Cal fee-for-service providers will be delayed until the start of the 2008-09 Budget year. Because this year’s budget is so contentious, reimbursements may be delayed well beyond July. Furthermore, all August check-writes will be delayed until September. The California Primary Care Association is working to collect the stories of clinics that will be negatively impacted and to assist clinics in securing loans needed to offset the delays.

Clinic programs meet critical needs

Community clinics and health centers, including Title X Delegate Agencies, rely upon this critical funding to serve the state’s underserved and uninsured populations. The clinic programs reduced in the Governor’s Budget comprise only a small fraction of the state’s overall spending, but allow clinics to provide reproductive health, medical, dental, and health education services to thousands of California’s uninsured and underserved populations.

Community clinics serve as a safety net by providing care to people who would not otherwise have access to health services. The current effort to fix our state’s deficit comes at the expense of millions of California ’s most vulnerable citizens and those who serve them.

CFHC is working in numerous coalitions to ameliorate the effects of the budget cuts. It will take a combined, coordinated effort to ensure that community clinics remain open and available to the individuals and families in our communities who need them during this difficult time.

You can learn more about the advocacy role that CFHC has taken by reading about our participation in Reproductive Freedom Day 2008 as part of the California Coalition for Reproductive Justice.

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