Overview

November 25, 2024

Raise Our Rates Campaign Kicks Off Again to Make CBAS Revenue Sustainable

I am excited to share that CAADS leadership has kicked off our advocacy for the annual budget process. Last week we sent our official request to Governor Newsom and this week we’re starting to seek meetings to educate the Administration and the Legislature on the urgent need to make CBAS revenue sustainable.

In early 2025, we’ll start reaching out to all of you to help build momentum. For now, I wanted to make sure everyone understands our request. Here’s what you need to know:    

1. The Goal Is the Same

We’re building on last year’s Raise Our Rates campaign by asking the State to make up for 15 years of inflation-driven cuts to CBAS revenue. We’re asking for enough state funding to ensure that CBAS providers can actually provide – that all of you can deliver person-centered care without constant revenue concerns.   

We’re asking the State to take our existing CBAS rate and:

·         Get it halfway to $131.08 in 2025-26.

·         Get it 75% of the way to $134.62 in 2026-27.

·         Get it all the way to $138.26 in 2027-28.

·         Then provide annual inflation-based increases thereafter.

2. Our Timeline Is Longer (to Increase Our Chances)

Last year’s campaign helped us clarify the fiscal and political realities that shape budget decisions. So this year we’re asking the State to achieve what we’re calling the Durable Access Level over three years.

The framing of our request is thus new – both the “Durable Access Level” part and the “over three years” part. In future newsletters, I’ll explain the “Durable Access Level” part, which changes how we communicate numbers. But today I’ll explain the “over three years” part, which changes what the numbers are.

Instead of asking for $131.08 this year (which is last year’s request plus two years of inflation). We’re asking for state General Fund investments to achieve 50% of our target rate this year, 75% next year, and 100% the following year. This multi-year framework is designed to address cost concerns and political reluctance by offering policymakers a smoother, more incremental pathway to get us where we need to go.

3. Our Messaging Is Bolder (also to Increase Our Chances)

The Governor and other leaders are busy preparing to counter federal changes, adjust policy agendas, and update political ambitions. In response to their shifting priorities, we’re aligning our budget messaging with Sacramento’s renewed focus on immigrant families (which will likely endure through the budget process).

CAADS members already know the CBAS rate is always urgent and relevant. But we’re striving to ensure policymakers feel the urgency and relevance by connecting our request with their conversations.

We’ll thus be emphasizing the fact that the vast majority of CBAS participants are part of first- or second-generation immigrant families. We’ll also justify our request by linking the stability of CBAS to the success of CalAIM and the homelessness prevention that providers do to the State’s housing agenda, among other things.

We’ll often lead with references to immigrant families to get our request included in broader conversations and build our network of support. For example, the first statistic in our letter to the Governor is that 79% of participants speak a language other than English at home. This will help the Administration understand who will face negative consequences if we don’t get a raise increase and if centers close down.

To get a better sense, please read our November 25, 2024, letter to the Governor. Stay tuned for more updates!

September 17, 2024

Governor Newsom Vetoes AB 2428, What Now?

First of all, thank you very much for your support of AB 2428. Be assured that your support for this bill and the CBAS rate increase was key to our budget win. With your help, we successfully elevated the urgency of raising CBAS rates, attracted a Senate champion in the person of Senator Menjivar, and were given a seat at the witness table during budget hearings where we were able to discuss AB 2428 and rates. 

Despite this tremendous grassroots support and CAADS lobbying team's almost year-long efforts, we are sorry to report that Governor Newsom vetoed AB 2428 (L. Calderon) on Saturday, September 14, 2024. You can read the veto message below. We are deeply disappointed, though not surprised, because of recent meetings we held with the Dept. of Health Care Services. 

During these meetings, we learned that a major concern, not expressed in the veto message, is the ongoing state workload related to requirements that the federal government imposes on "directed payments" to providers within managed care.

Ironically, the department is already engaged in such a workload because of a provision in the Health Trailer Bill that implements a directed payment for CBAS related to funding in the state budget. However, this language expires in three years, compared to the permanent policy to establish a rate "floor" in AB 2428. This was the crux of the veto.

The good news in the veto message is the Governor stating plainly in writing that he wants DHCS "to work with managed care plans to modify their contracts to ensure that CBAS providers caring for older and disabled Californians are receiving these rate increases." CAADS has been and will continue working with DHCS to ensure this happens.

The situation is confusing. There is indeed a rate increase in the budget for centers that are at the current $76.27 rate, but it may not come to pass as budgeted and scheduled on January 1, 2025 if Prop. 35 passes.

Prop. 35 would negate the rate increase, but CAADS will be back at it in January getting the rate increase restored.

August 26, 2024

Letter from CAADS to Governor Newsom Urging Signature on AB 2428

Dear Governor Newsom:

The California Association of Adult Day Services (CAADS) is pleased to sponsor AB 2428 by Assembly Member Lisa Calderon, which would ensure that rate increases agreed upon by the Administration and Legislature for Community-Based Adult Services (CBAS) providers are passed through by managed care plans who contract with these providers for services.

Across the state, an insufficient number of CBAS programs offer medically necessary services...

Campaign Focused Clips from the Past