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Panel advances SB 433 to cap room-and-board increases for certain Medi-Cal assisted-living participants
Summary
SB 433 would extend an income-based cap and a personal-needs allowance to Medi-Cal participants in Assisted Living Waiver and CalAIM assisted living transition programs to protect low-income residents from disproportionate room-and-board increases and displacement.
The author presented SB 433, which would create an income-based cap on room-and-board charges at residential care facilities for the elderly (RCFEs) for Medi-Cal participants in the Assisted Living Waiver (ALW) and CalAIM assisted living transitions community supports. The measure aims to let those Medi-Cal participants retain a modest personal-needs allowance and prevent eviction or displacement caused by large room-and-board rate increases.
Witnesses supporting the bill included Hagar Dickman of Justice and Aging and Maura Gibney of California Advocates for Nursing Home Reform (CANN). They described cases in which low-income Medi-Cal participants without Supplemental Security Income (SSI) protections were charged rates that left them with little or no allowance for basic needs. One example cited a resident who was left with $20 a month for personal needs after a charge of $1,480 out of a $1,500 income.
Support testimony came from several organizations and stakeholders on the record, including the Retired Public Employees Association, California Council of the Blind, Western Center on Law and Poverty, County Welfare Directors Association, and the Alzheimer's Association. Several organizations that had opposed the bill said they would remove their opposition after committee amendments were accepted.
The author and witnesses emphasized that SB 433 does not change Medi-Cal reimbursement rates to providers; instead, it changes consumer protections regarding how much low-income Medi-Cal participants can be required to pay for room and board.
Action and next steps: The committee voted to pass SB 433 as amended to the Assembly Appropriations Committee; the hearing record shows roll-call activity and multiple readouts during the session indicating the measure advanced with committee amendments accepted.
The sponsor said the bill creates parity with SSI recipients who already have statutory protections and would allow additional Medi-Cal-assisted living participants to retain a modest personal-needs allowance to pay for essentials such as clothing and toiletries.
