SB 56 (Alquist): Joint Ventures - County Health Systems

Summary of Bill: Today, California counties provide insurance to 3.8 million low-income individuals receiving Medi-Cal, the California run version of Medicaid. These county programs successfully serve 52% of all California Medi-Cal recipients through local, cost-effective provider networks with very low levels of overhead. Current state law does not grant counties the ability to pool their resources.

This bill will empower California counties to create joint ventures that pool risk and share networks and/or to provide for the joint offering or marketing of health plans to low-income individuals with incomes less than 200% of the Federal Poverty Level.

Check on SB 56 Status, text, vote history here.

Action: Call and fax Assembly Appropriations and your Assembly members to support SB 56 and get it onto the Governor’s desk this August.

Talking Points:
     • S.B. 56—Health Plans: Joint Ventures—is a bill that would authorize county health plans to form joint ventures, thus enabling them to pool risks and share provider networks.
     • The California Legislature is in an important position to enact model legislation which will strengthen health care and make the promise of health care reform real in the lives of California citizens. California's implementing legislation will also be widely copied across the nation.

UULMCA's letter of support