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Home/Bills/AB 403California · 2025–2026 Regular Session
Assembly BillFailedWelfare and Institutions

AB 403: Medi-Cal: community health worker services.

California · Assembly · 2025–2026 Regular Session · last verified February 3, 2026

What AB 403 does, verified February 3, 2026

This bill requires the state department of health care services to annually analyze the community health worker (CHW) services benefit under the Medi-Cal program. The analysis must be submitted to the legislature and published on the department's website, with the first analysis due on July 1, 2027. The analysis should include an assessment of outreach and education efforts, CHW benefit utilization and services, demographic data, and Medi-Cal reimbursements for CHW services. This will help improve the access and cultural competence of service delivery and facilitate access to health and social services for Medi-Cal beneficiaries.

Bill journey
✓IntroducedComplete
2In CommitteeCurrent
3First Chamber FloorPending
4Second ChamberPending
5GovernorPending
6ChapteredPending
Last action: From committee: Filed with the Chief Clerk pursuant to Joint Rule 56. (2026-02-02)Alert me
Author and sponsors
Asm. Liz OrtegaAuthor · California State Assembly
Full contact details, staff, and committees with Connect, $16/moUnlock
Coauthors
Juan CarrilloMark GonzálezPilar Schiavo
Recent actions10 total · showing 5
Feb. 02, 2026From committee: Filed with the Chief Clerk pursuant to Joint Rule 56.
Jan. 31, 2026Died pursuant to Art. IV, Sec. 10(c) of the Constitution.
May. 23, 2025In committee: Held under submission.
Apr. 09, 2025In committee: Set, first hearing. Referred to APPR. suspense file.
Mar. 26, 2025From committee: Do pass and re-refer to Com. on APPR. with recommendation: To Consent Calendar. (Ayes 15. Noes 0.) (March 25). Re-referred to Com. on APPR.
Full action history, 5 earlier actionsConnect Plus
Latest bill textAmended version, March 17, 2025 · 950 words

Amended IN Assembly March 17, 2025

CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2025–2026 REGULAR SESSION

Assembly Bill
No. 403

Introduced by Assembly Member Ortega
(Coauthor: Assembly Member Carrillo)(Coauthors: Assembly Members Carrillo, Mark González, and Schiavo)

February 04, 2025

An act to add Section 14132.37 to the Welfare and Institutions Code, relating to Medi-Cal.


LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


AB 403, as amended, Ortega. Medi-Cal: community health worker services.
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. The Medi-Cal program is, in part, governed and funded by federal Medicaid program provisions.
Under existing law, community health worker (CHW) services are a covered Medi-Cal benefit subject to any necessary federal approvals. CHW is defined as a liaison, link, or intermediary between health and social services and the community to facilitate access to services and to improve the access and cultural competence of service delivery. Existing law requires a Medi-Cal managed care plan to engage in outreach and education efforts to enrollees with regard to the CHW services benefit, as specified. Existing law requires the department to inform stakeholders about implementation of the benefit.
This bill would require the department to annually review the above-described outreach and education efforts conducted by Medi-Cal managed care plans. The bill would require the department to annually conduct an analysis of the CHW services benefit, submit each the analysis to the Legislature, and publish each the analysis on the department’s internet website, with the first analysis due July 1, 2027.
The bill would require the analysis to include, at a minimum, an assessment of CHW capacity and the needs of Medi-Cal beneficiaries, a disaggregation of the assessment by geographic region, race, ethnicity, language, age, and other sociodemographic factors, and by Medi-Cal managed care plan as applicable, the above-described outreach and education efforts conducted by each Medi-Cal managed care plan, an assessment of the CHW benefit utilization and services, a demographic disaggregation of CHWs providing the CHW benefit and the Medi-Cal beneficiaries receiving services, and data on Medi-Cal reimbursements for CHW services billed to the department, as specified.
Vote: MAJORITY Appropriation: NO Fiscal Committee: YES Local Program: NO

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:


SECTION 1.

Section 14132.37 is added to the Welfare and Institutions Code, immediately following Section 14132.36, to read:

14132.37.

(a) For purposes of this section, “community health worker” or “CHW” has the same meaning as set forth in subdivision (b) of Section 18998. The term includes, among other persons listed in that subdivision, promotores and community health representatives.

(b)The department shall annually review the outreach and education efforts that are conducted by Medi-Cal managed care plans pursuant to Section 14132.36.

(c)

(b) On an annual basis, the department shall conduct an analysis of the CHW services benefit covered under Section 14132.36, submit each the analysis to the Legislature in accordance with Section 9795 of the Government Code, and publish each the analysis on the department’s internet website. The department shall complete, submit, and publish the first analysis by July 1, 2027.

(d)

(c) The analysis described in subdivision (c) (b) shall include, at a minimum, all of the following:

(1)An assessment of CHW capacity and the needs of Medi-Cal beneficiaries, including those enrolled in Medi-Cal managed care plans or under the fee-for-service delivery system.

(2)A disaggregation of the assessment described in paragraph (1) by geographic region, race, ethnicity, language, age, and other sociodemographic factors, and by Medi-Cal managed care plan as applicable, including all of the following:

(A)The types of services provided by CHWs to Medi-Cal beneficiaries.

(B)The number of eligible Medi-Cal beneficiaries.

(C)The number of referrals by provider type.

(D)The number of contracted CHWs by employer type, including, but not limited to, community-based organizations, licensed providers, clinics, or hospitals.

(E)The racial, ethnic, age, regional, and linguistic diversity of CHWs.

(F)The total number of Medi-Cal beneficiaries served, disaggregated by race, ethnicity, language, age, and other sociodemographic factors.

(G)The number of contracted CHW entities needed to meet the expected demand for CHW services.

(1) An assessment of the outreach and education efforts that are conducted by each Medi-Cal managed care plan pursuant to Section 14132.36.
(2) An assessment of the CHW benefit utilization and services provided to Medi-Cal beneficiaries eligible for the CHW Medi-Cal benefit, including those enrolled in Medi-Cal managed care plans or under the fee-for-service delivery system, including the following:
(A) Of the specific services described in the CHW benefit, the relative frequency of each service being provided by CHWs to Medi-Cal beneficiaries.
(B) An estimate of the number of eligible Medi-Cal beneficiaries.
(C) The number of referrals by provider type.
(D) The number of CHWs providing the CHW benefit, by employer type, including, but not limited to, community-based organizations, licensed providers, clinics, or hospitals.
(E) The number of CHWs needed to meet the expected demand for CHW services.
(3) A demographic disaggregation of the CHWs providing the CHW benefit and of the Medi-Cal beneficiaries receiving services through the benefit by geographic region, race, ethnicity, language, age, and other sociodemographic factors, and by Medi-Cal managed care plan as applicable.

(3)

(4)
 Data on Medi-Cal reimbursements for CHW services billed to the department. The data shall include the total amount, in dollars, reimbursed to providers and supervising entities in the provision of CHW services.

(e)

(d) The demographic data that are submitted and published as part of the department’s analysis under this section shall include only data that are statistically significant.

(f)

(e) For purposes of protecting the privacy of Medi-Cal beneficiaries, the collection, submission, publication, and other reporting of data under this section shall exclude any personally identifiable information.
Text of AB 403 as amended, from the official record. Connect Plus keeps every version and highlights what changed.Compare versions
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