A new initiative in California is bringing together behavioral health and primary care leaders to accelerate care improvement and integration in the state’s Medicaid program, Medi-Cal, through policy and practice change.
Supported by the California Health Care Foundation (CHCF) and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) and launched by the JSI Research & Training Institute Inc. (JSI), the Delta Center California will run through December 2022.
The goals of the Delta Center California initiative are to:
• Foster collaboration and collective action between primary care and behavioral health at the state and county levels in California;
• Build knowledge and ability of state associations to ensure that changes in incentives and care systems meet the goals and needs of individuals and families; and
• Accelerate payment and care integration through on-the-ground projects in selected sites across California.
Delta Center California was inspired by the model of the Delta Center for a Thriving Safety Net, a national RWJF-funded initiative that launched in 2017, which funded and convened national and state associations representing health centers and behavioral health organizations in 12 states to advance policy and practice change. As the program office leader of the national Delta Center, JSI recognized both the potential for a similar effort in California and the need for such an effort to be tailored to the unique California policy environment.
CHCF also recognized the potential to give California’s state associations, representing primary care and behavioral health providers and payers, a neutral venue to identify and explore policy changes to facilitate integrated care in Medi-Cal. The initiative would also provide a forum for the state associations to explore implementation opportunities and challenges associated with CalAIM, the multiyear process led by the California Department of Health Care Services (DHCS) to improve the health outcomes and quality of life experienced by Medi-Cal patients. Although the COVID-19 crisis has delayed CalAIM implementation, the pandemic has also elevated the critical importance of having a strong, coordinated and sustainable safety-net system for all Californians.
“In the U.S., individuals with serious mental illness die 15 to 30 years earlier than those without mental illness,” said Robin Haller, Delta Center California project director, in a statement. “This disparity isn’t driven by suicides or overdoses; by and large, these individuals are dying from the same chronic physical health conditions that are leading causes of death among the general population. But they are dying decades earlier. This underscores the urgent need for improved integration of physical and behavioral health care for these individuals.”
“Delta Center California provides a remarkable opportunity to improve the care, experience, and health outcomes for Californians with mental health and substance use needs, and their families,” said Catherine Teare, associate director for high-value care at CHCF, in a statement. “This is a major initiative to advance integration in California’s safety net, tailoring the core approaches used in the successful national model for a California context, and bringing a focus on racial equity and consumer voices to the table.”
Led by JSI, Delta Center California is the product of a planning process that engaged over 30 California stakeholders and thought leaders. The resulting initiative focuses on adults in need of specialty mental health and/ or substance use services.
Delta Center California will bring together leaders from the following organizations to collaborate on a State Policy & Partnership Roundtable:
• California Alliance of Child and Family Services (CA Alliance)
• California Association of Public Hospitals and Health Systems/CA Health Care Safety Net Institute (CAPH/SNI)
• California Council of Community Behavioral Health Agencies (CBHA)
• California Institute For Behavioral Health Solutions (CIBHS)
• California Primary Care Association (CPCA)
• County Behavioral Health Directors Association of California (CBHDA)
• Local Health Plans of California (LHPC)
• National Alliance on Mental Illness California (NAMI CA)
Healthcare Innovation recently published a discussion with four leading voices in the integrated behavioral healthcare movement who shared their perspectives on the opportunities to bridge the gaps in care delivery and accelerate the development of a proactive approach to whole-person healthcare.
