Board votes to begin transition toward single county Medi‑Cal plan, changes Family Health Plan governance

The Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors voted unanimously on May 20 to direct county staff to begin a multi‑step process to transition toward a single county‑owned Medi‑Cal managed care plan and to change the Santa Clara County Health Authority’s governance structure.

Why it matters: County leaders said the move is aimed at protecting the county’s safety‑net hospitals, clinics and community providers from looming state and federal changes to Medicaid funding and to reduce administrative fragmentation they said is limiting the county’s ability to maximize reimbursement for patient care.

The board’s action followed a lengthy staff briefing and more than two hours of public comment from physicians, clinic and hospital executives, union representatives, and community leaders. County Executive James Williams framed the proposal as a structural response to a shifting federal and state policy landscape that may reduce Medicaid-related revenues and enrollment. Williams told the board the current multiple‑plan structure creates administrative…