DATE: January 23, 2024
TO: Board of Supervisors
SUBMITTED BY: Susan Holt, Director, Department of Behavioral Health
SUBJECT: Data Sharing Agreement between the County of Fresno and the California Health and Human Services Agency.
RECOMMENDED ACTION(S):
TITLE
Approve the Data Sharing Agreement between the County of Fresno’s Department of Behavioral Health and the California Health and Human Services Agency and authorize the Department of Behavioral Health Director, or designee, to be the signatory and act as the Fresno County representative on behalf of the Board of Supervisors to sign the electronic version of the Data Sharing Agreement (through the electronic signature portal) between the County of Fresno and the California Health and Human Services Agency, effective January 31, 2024 until terminated by either party ($0).
REPORT
There is no additional Net County Cost associated with the recommended action. The recommended Agreement will allow the Department of Behavioral Health to participate in the California Health and Human Services Agency Center for Data Insights and Innovation. This item is countywide.
ALTERNATIVE ACTION(S):
Should your Board not approve the recommended action, the county would be out of compliance with California Health and Safety Code § 130290(f) which requires certain data sharing among entities on or before January 31, 2024 and may not receive part of the California Advancing and Innovating Medi-Cal (CalAIM) Behavioral Health Quality Improvement Program (BHQIP) incentive payment, which supports the Department of Behavioral Health to prepare for changes in the California Advancing and Innovating Medi-Cal (CalAIM) initiative.
FISCAL IMPACT:
There is no Net County Cost associated with the recommended action.
DISCUSSION:
The Department of Health Care Services (“DHCS”) issued CalAIM Data Sharing Authorization Guidance in 2022, setting out specific guidance that supports data sharing between Managed Care Plans (MCPs) health care providers, community-based social and human services providers, local health jurisdictions, and county and other public agencies that provide services and managed care under CalAIM. The County through its Department of Behavioral Health is identified as a Mental Health Plan (MHP), defined in Title 9 CCR, section 1810.226 and is required by Department of Health Care Services (“DHCS”) to enter into a Data Sharing Agreement with Medi-Cal managed care plans (CalViva, and Anthem Blue Cross) providing health care services to MHP Medi-Cal beneficiaries.
Additionally, as required by Assembly Bill (AB) 133: Health Omnibus Trailer Bill, the California Health and Human Services Agency (CalHHS) Center for Data Insights and Innovation (CDII) released the final Data Exchange Framework (DxF). The DxF is a first-ever statewide data sharing agreement that will accelerate and expand the exchange of health information among health care entities, government agencies, and social service programs. The DxF comprises a single DSA and its common policies and procedures that will leverage and advance national standards for information exchange and data content and will govern and require the exchange of health information among health care entities and government agencies in California effective January 31, 2024. The signing will be administered through the online electronic signature portal that the California Health and Human Services Agency (CalHHS) has launched for hospitals and health agencies.
If the County determines that a change to the policies and procedures will cause it to violate the law, the agreement allows the County to terminate the Agreement immediately. Participant of the data sharing agreement will be liable for its own acts or omissions and not for the acts or omissions of any other Participant. This agreement is specific to Fresno County’s Department of Behavioral Health at this time and that the Department of Public Health and the Department of Social Services may be able to enter into this agreement as well at a future date.
ATTACHMENTS INCLUDED AND/OR ON FILE:
On file with Clerk - DxF Data Sharing Agreement
CAO ANALYST:
Ron Alexander