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SF Health Commission: department outlines ACA enrollment progress, outreach push and April 15 extension
Summary
San Francisco Department of Public Health reported city enrollment figures through February, estimated 43,000—5,200 residents could remain uninsured by year—nd, and described outreach including jail enrollment efforts and an April 15 extension for started Covered California applications.
The San Francisco Department of Public Health told the Health Commission that Covered California and Medi-Cal enrollment has outpaced early projections and described a concentrated outreach push to enroll remaining uninsured residents.
Colleen, a department presenter, said national exchanges have enrolled about 7.1 million people and California has reached roughly 1.2 million enrollees; local figures presented through February showed about 27,809 Covered California enrollments in the city and a little more than 33,000 San Franciscans enrolled in Medi-Cal, “mostly people who were eligible under the ACA expansion,” an enrollment analyst said.
The department estimated that the newly eligible Medi-Cal population in the city could be roughly 81,000 to 95,000 people and projected that between about 43,000 and 52,000 people could remain uninsured at the end of the year under several take-up scenarios. Presenters said roughly 18,000 city residents are not eligible for coverage (largely because of immigration status) and that not everyone who is eligible will enroll.
Sneha Patel, who leads outreach activity reporting, described targeted efforts including work with the sheriff nd jail health staff to enroll inmates prior to release; since January the department reported about 325 Medi-Cal applications submitted from the jail. Healthy San Francisco held an enrollment event at City College on March 22 that drew about 223 attendees; staff completed 72 applications there (41 for Covered California, 31 for Medi-Cal) and initiated another 31 applications that were not completed.
Staff said technical problems during the Covered California rollout left some residents with partially completed online applications; the state permitted people who had started applications to finish them by April 15 if they complete payment requirements. The department said it had notified Healthy San Francisco sign-up sites and certified assisters and would step up public messaging and partner outreach to help residents finish incomplete applications.
Commissioners pressed for demographic breakdowns, including 18-to-34 age bands and young adult enrollment; presenters said Covered California may provide age-group data and the department would pursue local analysis when more detailed data are available. Commissioners also asked about whether leaving jail counts as a qualifying life event; presenters said legislation to authorize the sheriff to enroll inmates was at the Board of Supervisors and that the department nd sheriff re working on implementation models, potentially using community-based organizations to assist follow-up after release.
The department warned that the full fiscal and operational impacts of Supervisor Campos—ill to change the Health Care Security Ordinance and the city option remain under analysis; staff said they would return to the commission with budget and policy impact assessments.
The commission was told a citywide estimate of 33,000 Medi-Cal enrollees and 27,809 Covered California enrollments are current through February and that the department will update figures as Covered California releases more data.
