Nursing home residents are being asked to move out after their Medi-Cal plans terminated regular payments. Health Consumer Alliance member Legal Services of Northern California is featured for advocacy to assist residents facing these challenges:
Some of California’s most vulnerable nursing home residents, many of whom have nowhere else to go, are receiving letters from their health care plans saying they are no longer eligible for long-term care.
The California Department of Health Care Services, which administers Medi-Cal, the state’s Medicaid program for low-income people, said the terminations by the managed care plan, CenCal Health, were isolated, a perspective some long-term care advocates share. CenCal said it was just following protocol, examining the books to make sure members still met the qualifications for long-term care under Medi-Cal.
[Legal aid attorneys] worry such denials may soon become more commonplace: Medi-Cal nursing home care in all 58 counties will be placed under managed care beginning in January 2021, the state announced recently — up from 29 counties currently.
Read more from the Sacramento Bee here. If your Medi-Cal plan is denying coverage for long-term care or any other service, contact the Health Consumer Alliance for free and confidential help: (888) 804‑3536.
