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Committee forwards $3.37M one-time bridge for adult day health centers while department studies longer-term options
Summary
The committee sent a supplemental appropriation to the full Board without recommendation for roughly $3.37 million in one-time bridge funds to keep adult day health centers operating after the state cut adult day health from the Medi‑Cal plan; providers and advocates urged approval, and the department will return with staffing justification and follow-up details.
The Budget and Finance Committee forwarded to the Board a supplemental appropriation to provide one-time bridge funding to adult day health centers after the state removed adult day health from the Medi‑Cal plan and eliminated the federal matching funds tied to that state benefit.
Department of Aging and Adult Services staff explained that the state action resulted in about a $10 million local funding loss; the department proposed approximately $3.4 million in one-time funding to maintain operations through a seven-month transition while it builds an assessment team to evaluate clients and pursue alternative funding sources. The department described the assessment team as costing roughly $300,000 and said the balance would be distributed pro rata to centers based on numbers served, with the department aiming to cover roughly 75% of annualized center operating costs for the seven-month period.
Supervisor Kim, a sponsor of the item, said the mayor's office and the department worked with advocates to backfill funding and urged consideration of the centers' role; multiple providers testified in favor. Gail Zoller of Jewish Family and Children's Services said their L'Chaim center serves about 250 frail, primarily Russian-speaking seniors; Molly Steinert of Stepping Stone said her organization administers four centers serving almost 400 people annually and warned that a sudden program loss would increase institutionalization and hospitalization costs (Steinert cited an average hospitalization cost of about $9,600).
The budget analyst said the proposed supplemental would reduce the city 'state revenue loss fund' by about $3.37 million (leaving roughly $11 million) and estimated that if the program continued beyond the bridge period, an annual cost in 2012–13 could be around $5.73 million. Chair Carmen Chu said she supported a one-time bridge to avoid abrupt service loss but expressed hesitation about adding ongoing department staff on a permanent basis; the committee moved the item to the Board "without recommendation" and asked the department to return with additional justification and staffing details before the Board vote.
