Dive Brief:
- California lawmakers are working through two proposals intended to help rural hospitals, providers and patients before they wrap up the state's 2016 legislative session, California Healthline reported.
- One bill, passed in the state Senate and Assembly, would require Medi-Cal to pay for patients’ transportation costs for medical appointments.
- The second bill aims to authorize small, rural hospitals to hire physicians directly in order to make staffing more feasible and potentially reduce healthcare costs.
Dive Insight:
At least one of the proposals looks promising, with the the Medi-Cal transportation coverage already being sent to Gov. Jerry Brown’s desk. Although Brown vetoed a similar bill in 2015 due to uncertainty around Medi-Cal funding, proponents of the legislation are optimistic because program funding is now more stable.
They have suggested while the legislation would increase Medi-Cal costs by $3 million to $6 million each year, that investment could result in an overall savings by making it more likely patients would undergo regular healthcare appointments rather than putting off care until encountering a health emergency. The law is particularly intended to help rural patients in need of specialists, for which some patients are known to travel more than four hours.
Many patients with Medi-Cal managed care health plans already get their transportation covered, but under the new bill, all Medi-Cal beneficiaries would get travel covered as a required benefit, California Healthline noted.
The staffing bill, which would let 34 of the state's smallest rural hospitals hire physicians directly, would act in opposition to a current law that specifically prohibits direct hiring to avoid physicians being influenced by their employer. The new law is necessary, advocates argue, because there are currently too few physicians available in rural areas. Recruitment provides a potential solution, and would allow the hospitals to remove the cost of contracting out.
That measure has not yet passed the state Senate or Assembly and would need to do so by August 31 to get sent to the governor's desk.