Federally qualified health centers and rural health clinics: psychological associates.

Existing law establishes the Medi-Cal program, which is administered by the State Department of Health Care Services and under which qualified low-income individuals receive health care services, including federally qualified health center (FQHC) services and rural health clinic (RHC) services. The Medi-Cal program is, in part, governed and funded by federal Medicaid program provisions. Existing law requires that FQHC services and RHC services be reimbursed on a per-visit basis and defines a visit as a face-to-face encounter, or other modality of interaction, as specified, between a patient and specified practitioners. This bill would add to that list of practitioners a licensed professional clinical counselor. Existing law authorizes an FQHC or RHC to apply for an adjustment to its per-visit rate based on a change in the scope of services provided by the FQHC or RHC and includes in the definition of a change in the scope of services any changes in any of the federally defined FQHC services or RHC services, among other things. Existing law requires an FQHC or RHC that does not provide certain services, including marriage and family therapist services, and later elects to add those services and bill them as a separate visit to process the addition of the services as a change in scope of service, as specified. This bill would remove the requirement for an FQHC or RHC that does not provide marriage and family therapist services, but later elects to add those services and bill them as a separate visit, to file for a change in scope of service. Existing law requires the department to seek any necessary federal approvals and issue appropriate guidance to allow an FQHC or RHC to bill, under a supervising licensed behavioral health practitioner, for an encounter between an FQHC or RHC patient and an associate clinical social worker or associate marriage and family therapist when certain conditions are met, including, among others, that the FQHC or RHC is otherwise authorized to bill for services provided by the supervising practitioner as a separate visit. This bill would add a psychological associate or associate professional clinical counselor to those provisions, requiring the department to seek any necessary federal approvals and issue appropriate guidance to allow an FQHC or RHC to bill for an encounter between a patient and a psychological associate or associate professional clinical counselor under those conditions. The bill would make conforming changes with regard to supervision by a licensed behavioral health practitioner, as required by the associate's applicable clinical licensing board.