California Assembly Bill AB2589 Amended / Bill

 BILL NUMBER: AB 2589AMENDED BILL TEXT AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY MAY 27, 2016 AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY APRIL 26, 2016 AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY APRIL 5, 2016 AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY MARCH 18, 2016 INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Gomez FEBRUARY 19, 2016 An act to add Sections 123362 and 123363 to the Health and Safety Code, relating to  lactation services.   public health.  LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST AB 2589, as amended, Gomez.  Lactation   Public health: lactation  services and equipment. Existing law provides for the California Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC Program) administered by the State Department of Public Health and counties, under which nutrition and other assistance is provided to eligible low-income postpartum and lactating women, infants, and children under 5 years of age. Existing law provides for the Medi-Cal program, which is administered by the State Department of Health Care Services, under which health care services, including breastfeeding services, are provided to qualified low-income persons. Existing law requires the State Department of Health Care Services to streamline and simplify existing Medi-Cal program procedures in order to improve access to lactation supports and breast pumps among Medi-Cal recipients. This bill would require the State Department of Public Health to coordinate with the State Department of Health Care Services and Covered California  to develop processes, procedures, and an electronic interface for eligibility-related information sharing to streamline enrollment into the WIC Program as part of the application process for Medi-Cal and health plans offered through the California Health Benefit Exchange.  The bill would requi   re the interface of the California Healthcare Eligibility, Enrollment, and Retention System (CalHEERS) to identify individuals who may be eligible for the WIC Program and, by certain dates, provide electronic access to program applications in a certain format, as specified.  The bill would  also  require the State Department of Public Health to coordinate with the State Department of Health Care Services, through a stakeholder engagement process, as specified, to develop measures and outcomes for breastfeeding rates, as specified. The bill would require the recommendations from the stakeholder engagement process to be posted on the departments' Internet Web sites by January 1, 2018. Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: no. THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS: SECTION 1. Section 123362 is added to the Health and Safety Code, to read: 123362.  (a)    The State Department of Public Health shall coordinate with the State Department of Health Care Services  and Covered California  to develop processes, procedures, and an electronic interface for eligibility-related information sharing to streamline enrollment into the California Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children, known as the WIC Program, as part of the application process for Medi-Cal and health plans offered through the California Health Benefit Exchange established under Title 22 (commencing with Section 100500) of the Government Code.  (b) On or before January 1, 2019, the California Healthcare Eligibility, Enrollment, and Retention System (CalHEERS) developed under Section 15926 of the Welfare and Institutions Code shall identify individuals who are potentially eligible for the WIC Program and, if a potentially eligible individual wishes to apply for the WIC Program, electronically link them to a WIC Program application.   (c) On or before January 1, 2022, the California Healthcare Eligibility, Enrollment, and Retention System (CalHEERS) developed under Section 15926 of the Welfare and Institutions Code shall identify individuals who are potentially eligible for the WIC Program and, if a potentially eligible individual wishes to apply for the WIC Program and provides consent to share confidential data with the WIC Program, provide a simple interface for the individual to electronically complete a WIC Program application without resubmitting data already known to the CalHEERS system.  SEC. 2. Section 123363 is added to the Health and Safety Code, to read: 123363. (a) The State Department of Public Health shall coordinate with the State Department of Health Care Services, through a stakeholder engagement process that shall include, but not be limited to, representatives from health care providers, primary care clinics, and health plans, state and local staff from the California Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC Program) and the Maternal, Child and Adolescent Health program, and representatives from organizations representing women, infants, and children, to, beginning prenatally and continuing through the postpartum period and at least until the infant reaches one year of age, develop measures and outcomes for breastfeeding rates that do both of the following: (1) Include, at a minimum, women's intention to breastfeed, breastfeeding initiation rates, and exclusivity and duration. (2) Identify ethnic disparities and sociodemographic differences. (b) The stakeholder process shall take no longer than six months and the recommendations shall be posted on the departments' Internet Web sites by January 1, 2018.