California Assembly Bill AB648 Latest Draft

 BILL NUMBER: AB 648AMENDED BILL TEXT AMENDED IN SENATE AUGUST 1, 2016 AMENDED IN SENATE SEPTEMBER 1, 2015 AMENDED IN SENATE JUNE 29, 2015 AMENDED IN SENATE JUNE 11, 2015 INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Low (Coauthor: Senator Nguyen) FEBRUARY 24, 2015 An act to add Section  15438.11 to the Government   104755.5 to the Health and Safety  Code, relating to oral health, and making an appropriation therefor. LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST AB 648, as amended, Low. Health care access demonstration project grants: Virtual Dental Home  program.   Grant Program.   Existing law, the California Health Facilities Financing Authority Act, establishes a program for the California Health Facilities Authority to award grants that do not exceed $1,500,000 to one or more projects designed to demonstrate specified new or enhanced cost-effective methods of delivering quality health care services to improve access to quality health care for vulnerable populations or communities, or both, that are effective at enhancing health outcomes and improving access to quality health care and preventive services. Existing law requires the authority to prepare and provide a report to the Legislature and the Governor on the outcomes of the demonstration grant program that includes, among other information, the total amount of grants issued and the amount of each grant issued. Existing law establishes the California Health Facilities Financing Authority Fund, a continuously appropriated fund, for these purposes.   Existing law establishes the State Department of Public Health and sets forth its powers and duties, including, but not limited to, the administration of a state oral health program known as the Office of Oral Health for the purposes of, among other things, developing comprehensive dental health plans within the framework of the State Plan for Health to maximize utilization of all resources.  This bill would establish the Virtual Dental Home Grant Program, to  be administered by the authority, to expand   allocate funds, under the direction of the state dental director, for  the virtual dental home (VDH) model of community-based  delivery of  dental care  to the residents of this state who are in greatest   in geographic areas of highest  need, as prescribed.  The bill would also create the California Virtual Dental Home Grant Program Account (VDH account) within the California Health Facilities Financing Authority Fund.  The bill would require the program to  facilitate, coordinate, and encourage development and expansion of the delivery of dental health services through use of the VDH model by providing grants to,   allocate the grants to organizations to,  among other things, develop training modules and establish community-based learning collaboratives, as prescribed.  The bill would require the authority to evaluate the grant program's progress toward meeting the objective to expand the VDH model of the community-based delivery of dental care and to post the evaluation and a summary of the evaluation, as specified.  The bill would require organizations receiving grants to submit an evaluation on the effectiveness of the program to the department and would authorize the department to post the evaluations on its Internet Web site.  The bill would  transfer up to $6,500,000 from the California Health Facilities Financing Authority Hospital Equipment Loan Program Fund to the VDH account   appropriate $4,000,000 from the General Fund to the State Department of Public Health  for the purposes of the bill.  By expanding the purposes for which a continuously appropriated fund may be used, this bill would make an appropriation.   This bill would become operative only if SB 315 is enacted and takes effect on or before January 1, 2016.  Vote:  majority   2/3  . Appropriation: yes. Fiscal committee: yes. State-mandated local program: no. THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS: SECTION 1. Section  15438.11   104755.5  is added to the  Government  Health and Safety  Code, to read:  15438.11. (a) (1) There is hereby created the California Virtual Dental Home Grant Program Account in the California Health Facilities Financing Authority Fund for the purpose of administering a competitive grant selection process, in accordance with this section. (2) An amount of up to three million dollars ($3,000,000) shall be transferred from funds in the California Health Facilities Financing Authority Hospital Equipment Loan Program that are not impressed with a trust for other purposes into the California Virtual Dental Home Grant Program Account for the purpose of administering a competitive grant selection process pursuant to this section. (b) The Virtual Dental Home (VDH) Grant Program is hereby established to expand the virtual dental home model of community-based delivery of dental care to the residents of this state who are in greatest need. The program shall be administered by the authority. (c) The VDH Grant Program shall facilitate, coordinate, and encourage development and expansion of the delivery of dental health services through the use of the VDH model by providing grants to do all of the following:   104755.5.   (a) The Virtual Dental Home (VDH) Grant Program is hereby established to allocate funds for the virtual dental home model of community-based dental care.   (b) Under the direction of the state dental director, the program shall allocate grants to organizations to do one or more of the following:  (1) Develop training modules and Internet-based technical assistance. (2) Establish community-based learning collaboratives. (3) Fund  essential VDH technology and equipment.   technology and equipment essential to establishing VDH delivery models.  (4) Develop and fund other services, as determined by the  grant administrator, as required   state dental director  to meet the requirements of this section.  (d) The authority may seek additional private or public funds to expand access to the VDH Grant Program.   (e) The VDH Grant Program shall be focused on   (c)     Under the direction of the state dental director, the program shall focus on  providing needed services in geographic areas of highest need, as determined by the  authority.   state dental director.   (f) The authority may grant funds directly to public and private educational institutions or nonprofit entities as required to meet the requirements of this section.   (g) The authority shall evaluate the VDH Grant Program's progress toward meeting the objective to expand the VDH model of the community-based delivery of dental care to residents in geographic areas of highest need. On or before January 1, 2020, the authority shall post the evaluation and a summary of the evaluation on its Internet Web site.   (d) Organizations provided grants pursuant to subdivision (b) shall submit an evaluation of the program to the department. The evaluation shall include statistics on the effectiveness of the program and outreach. The department may post the evaluations on its Internet Web site.   SEC. 2.   This act shall become operative only if Senate Bill 315 is enacted and takes effect on or before January 1, 2016.   SEC. 2.   The sum of four million dollars ($4,000,000) is hereby appropriated from the General Fund to the State Department of Public Health for purposes of the Virtual Dental Home (VDH) Grant Program established pursuant to Section 104755.5 of the Health and Safety Code.